VOLUNTARY groups across the borough are having their grants closely scrutinised by town hall chiefs.

They are conducting a complete review of who gets what, and say they want to make sure that cash is being used in the best possible way.

The overall amount of money is not going up, but officers promise that it will not be cut.

It is unclear as yet if sums will be increased in line with inflation.

The council says that the current funding mechanisms are "outdated, inadequate and inconsistent".

Many groups have been funded on a historic basis, year on year, without any agreements or monitoring in place. Members say they want a system which is co-ordinated, provides value for money, is based on results, and supports the councils wider objectives.

Bury gives out £1.2 million a year in grants to a wide range of voluntary organisations.

Almost £780,000 of this goes to 15 groups as major annual grants: these include the Citizens Advice Bureau, the CVS, Bury Womens Aid and Bury Metropolitan Arts Association.

There are a further 50 groups who receive smaller grants, such as Speakeasy, the Samaritans and Bury Boxing Club.

The review applies only to groups funded through the voluntary organisations budget, not to those funded, for instance, to carry out social services.

To make the system more transparent, a panel of councillors will be set up to award grants, in an echo of the former voluntary organisations sub-committee which was scrapped several years ago.

Voluntary groups are now being asked for their details, and the new system should be in place by the spring.

Organisations who are successful in their bids will be told by April.

Those who fail will be given a transition period of maybe six months to give them time to find alternative funding