Community and voluntary groups to benefit from funding awards

Lichfield District Council has revealed the organisations that have successfully secured Community and Voluntary Sector funding for the period 2024 to 2027.

A total of £787,288 will be distributed over the next three years to support a variety of impactful projects which will help to achieve the Lichfield District 2050 strategy goals of creating confident, prosperous, green and active communities.

Initially, the funding process attracted 33 applications. Of these, 19 progressed to the second stage, and ultimately, 14 organisations have been successful in their funding bids (listed below).

Each application was thoroughly assessed by officers before a cross-party members panel made recommendations.

Among the recipients are Spark Burntwood, Grace Cares and South Staffs Cruse Bereavement Support. Spark Burntwood is delivering targeted wellbeing sessions, financial resilience sessions and one-to-one support for residents who are in difficulty and need signposting to agencies that can help.

Grace Cares is raising awareness of issues affecting older residents, involving schools in intergenerational community projects and supporting volunteers to open up their homes for tea parties to combat loneliness.

South Staffs Cruse Bereavement Support is meanwhile upskilling volunteers so that they can support more people with a range of needs, provide early intervention contact online or over the phone as well as one-to-one and group support.

These organisations, along with others such as Fun Club Hub, Burntwood Be a Friend and The Hub at St Mary’s, are delivering critical services that improve mental health and community engagement and promote social inclusion.

Lichfield District Council’s Cabinet Member for Community Engagement, Councillor Richard Cox (pictured), said: “It’s been an exceptional year for so many quality bids, and It’s exciting that we can support these remarkable organisations to launch and continue some very promising community projects.

“While it’s disappointing that we can’t fund every application, the project panel has meticulously reviewed each one to ensure our support is directed to the most suitable projects over the coming three years and each one submitted a remarkable bid.  

“The successful projects reflect the diverse needs within our district and we look forward to seeing the positive outcomes these projects will generate."