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Over £89,000 awarded to help make a difference to Cumbrian communities

Community projects across the county have received a share of £89,000 to tackle issues around mental health, rural isolation, financial wellbeing and to improve access to sport and recreation.

26 charitable organisations received a share of the £77,144 at Cumbria Community Foundation’s recent grants panel. The money came from 24 grant making funds, administered by the Community Foundation, including those set up by the Cumberland and Westmorland Herald, the William Milburn Charitable Trust and Westmorland Family Community Fund.

18 people also received a share of 12,616 to help towards educational and vocational training fees.

The Lighthouse Community Mental Health Hub located at the rear of Stricklandgate House in Kendal can now provide a year of mental health support thanks to £3,500 from the Brian & Ann Clark Fund and Johnson Fund. The drop-in sessions are open to anyone wishing to maintain or improve their emotional or mental health.

Madeleine Iddon, Chair of Trustees said: “We provide a safe space for those in South Lakeland who may be struggling with their mental health or emotional wellbeing to drop-in, have a brew and a chat with trained peer support volunteers. This grant enables us to have stability in the lease of our hub, which acts as a home from home for many of our members.”

Penrith Cricket Sports and Social Club has 20 years of delivering high quality coaching. It was awarded £1,500 from the Rowan Fund and the Cumberland and Westmorland Herald Fund to support its volunteer expenses. This will increase the number of coaches and help deliver more sessions during both the winter and summer, and introduce female and disability sessions.

Andy Hall, Chairman, said: “We currently run nine teams and have plans to significantly increase the number of junior and senior teams, with women’s, girls and disability cricket being at the heart of the planned development over the next three years.

“To be able to maintain and significantly develop participation, we rely on volunteers giving their time to coach our players. The support of Cumbria Community Foundation is absolutely crucial to enabling us to develop and go a long way towards securing our long-term sustainability at the very heart of our local community.”

Other grants awarded include £5,500 to Kendal Gymnastics Club from the Castle Green Grassroots Fund, Cumbria Young People’s Grassroots Fund and the Fryer Grassroots Fund. The grant will help the club to relocate and expand into new premises. The club is extremely popular in the local region and more gymnasts wish to join than there is space available. The club wishes to set up a leadership academy for teenagers and adults to train to become a coach or judge.

Carlisle Society for the Blind received £5,000 from Abbeyfield Carlisle Society Over 55 Community First Fund and Janetta Topsy Laidlaw Trust Fund. The grant will support its regular, monthly home visiting service to 80 members with different levels of visual impairment and sight loss across the Carlisle district. This support to predominantly elderly people includes, general advice, demonstration of household adaptations, help in reading mail and writing letters.

Ellen Clements, Senior Grants & Donor Services Officer at Cumbria Community Foundation, said: “Thanks to the generosity of our fundholders we are able to support many worthy community organisations around the county. These organisations are vital for tackling issues affecting our communities.”

The closing date for Cumbria Community Foundation’s next main grants panel is 27th September 2019. For more information, visit www.cumbriafoundation.org or call a member of the grants team on 01900 825760.

Funding awarded to local groups in Barrow

Charitable causes in and around the Barrow area have received a share of more than £36,000 to provide support to some of the most disadvantaged people across the peninsular.

Four community groups and one young person received a share of the funds at Cumbria Community Foundation’s recent Barrow Community Trust grants panel. The funding supported activities addressing drug and alcohol issues, health and wellbeing and a litter picking project.

Carry on Breathing, which supports people with respiratory problems, received £1,000 from the Barrow Community Trust Fund towards running costs and activities such as yoga and singing workshops. The club was formed by the Barrow-based breathing support group to focus on techniques and exercises to alleviate respiratory problems.

Harry Brunskill, Secretary, said: “We have talks from doctors and nurses, gentle exercise like chair yoga, singing and the chance to chat with other people with similar problems. Sessions take place at The Living Well Centre on Duke Street from 1.30pm to 3pm on the first Wednesday in the month and at Ulverston Health Centre from 2pm to 4pm on the third Wednesday in the month.”

Barrow’s streets will become a lot cleaner thanks to community action group, Zest Cumbria CIC after it received £2,535 from the Cumbria Grassroots Fund for litter picking equipment, and high vis tabards. Zest Cumbria is made up of a group local of people wanting to make positive changes in the Barrow community.

Elaine Roberts, Director, said: “Litter comes in many forms. Take a look the next time you walk outside – you can’t miss it. Cigarette butts, fast food packaging, crisp bags, cans and cartons, newspapers, ATM slips, chewing gum. You name it, and it’s on our streets, in our parks and on our beaches.

“We are extremely grateful to Barrow Community Trust for awarding our group this funding to buy new litter picking equipment. We will be putting this equipment to good use and get the ‘war on litter’ started. We have already organised four community litter picks, both adults and kids are welcome to attend. Keep an eye out for our litter mascot ‘Pick It Up Pete’, he is going to be out and about in the community.”

For more details about ZEST and the organised litter picking events, visit its Facebook page: www.facebook.com/zestcommunityactiongroup

Cumbria Alcohol and Drug Advisory Service (CADAS), received £30,000 over 3 years from the Cumbria Fund to fund recruit and support volunteers. Leigh Williams, Chief Executive Officer said: “We are forever grateful for this grant. It will help us to meet the real boom in the demand for services in the Barrow area and we aim to double the size of the volunteer scheme. One thing we really want to do is use specific volunteer skills, such as yoga and mindfulness to help us deliver a programme of health and wellbeing activities. This will help our clients learn new skills to help them sustain their own wellbeing.”

If you are from the Furness area and think you might be able to help, email info@cadas.co.uk to find out more about its new exciting volunteer opportunities.

Ellen Clements, Grants and Donor Services at Cumbria Community Foundation, said: “Organisations like CADAS are essential in tackling issues in the local community and with help from the funds managed by the Foundation they can make a real difference.”

Applications for the next round of funding need to be submitted by Friday 14th June 2019. For more information or to apply visit www.cumbriafoundation.org or contact the grants team on 01900 825760.

Cumbria Young People’s Fund (Individuals)

The fund was created through an anonymous legacy gift of £1.2m – the donor was a retired teacher who cared passionately about helping young people. It aims to support applications which will make a difference to the lives of disadvantaged young people in Cumbria by supporting study or vocational training.

How much can you apply for?
• Maximum grant will normally be £2,000 and we expect to make no more than three grants but we would expect most awards to be in the region of £500 to £750.

Who can apply?
• Individuals aged 14-22 years living in Cumbria with priority given to young people from Barrow and Carlisle.
• Applicants will need to provide evidence of excellence in their chosen fields and/or evidence of how you will/are raising aspirations for young people in West Cumbria

Please refer to Cumbria Young People’s Fund (Individuals) Guidelines for full criteria before downloading the individual application form.

 

Cultural Fund

The Fund is the result of an initiative by Miss Mary Burkett and friends to help individuals in the arts. Its aim is to encourage individuals of excellence in their chosen field of the arts. Individuals are prioritised due to the comparative lack of funding available to them.

How much can you apply for?
• There is no maximum or minimum grant level, but the average grant is expected to be £500

Who can apply?
• Individuals resident in the county of Cumbria.

Please refer to Cultural Fund Guidelines for full criteria before downloading the individual application forms.