Following a visit from the Sheffield Star, we were rather surprised to read their account of Burngreave New Deal for Communities (BNDfC) and specifically Sorby House in the paper recently.

As we are keen to put our residents at ease, along with the members of public that have expressed opinions on the content on the article, we felt it only correct here at Sorby that we add the facts to alleviate any concerns:

Firstly the Burngreave New Deal programme was funded by central government, not by Sheffield City Council.

Secondly the programme was not about making a profit, but helping to enhance the look and feel of Burngreave. Providing it with a hub for community activities and an affordable central resource for local small to medium sized start up businesses.

At present only 15% of our current occupiers are grant funded, the rest are private companies that take little or no funding to ensure their businesses provide work and opportunities for many individuals.

Many of our tenants that use a car have no problem in getting to the building – the parking facilities we offer underneath the building are commented on by many of our guests as a real asset.

We appreciate the views used in constructing the argument for the article, but a balanced view is required: The financial investment is not about profit making, but about improving the area. Sorby House is a landmark building that now houses organisations that provide full-time employment to over 70 people.

We realise that it is popular to criticize areas such as Burngreave, but programmes such as BNDfC have enabled the growth of numerous businesses that without its presence would have been unable to establish.

The bottom line is that it was never envisaged BNDfC would make a profit and therefore any question of losses are of no real surprise. What has to be taken into consideration are the many benefits that the building affords, including the full-time jobs, 50 volunteer positions and over 100 presenting jobs made available on Burngreave Community Radio.

Burngreave now benefits from an iconic, state of the art building that stands proudly at the top of Spital Hill, housing many content occupants of Sheffield’s business community and hosting numerous community and corporate events.