Looking forward: How can our community funds support you next year?

31st December 2021

It’s nearly the New Year, and we’re looking forward to 2022 and all the new organisations we’ll get to work with.

Here’s a Christmassy look at some of the projects we funded in 2021 – a great bunch of people who play an important part in their communities. If you know someone who might benefit from our Neighbourhood Fund in the new year, then please check out our page for more information.

Dunheved Bowling Club

The kitchen is always an important part of the home, but especially so at Christmas. Earlier this year, we were delighted to give the Dunheved Bowling Club adequate funding to do some updating in their kitchen. Found in Launceston, the Club has a loyal membership and a very busy social calendar. Some of the members are elderly and/or live on their own, so these social events are an extra- special something-to-look-forward-to for them. Once the lockdowns lifted, the group was excited to resume some of their get-togethers, however, there was one thing that was letting them down. Their cooker! After their successful application to our Neighbourhood Fund, what better way to celebrate than by hosting a Christmas Coffee morning, where they shared a lot of smiles.

5th Newton Abbot Brownies What better way to celebrate Christmas than baking your very own Christmas cake! That’s what the 5th Newton Abbot Brownies have done, under the watchful eyes of June (Brown Owl) and her team. Measuring, mixing, baking and decorating – they’ve all enjoyed getting stuck in. Learning to bake is an important skill, and one that June was adamant her Brownies would learn. Unfortunately, their equipment was minimal, so after finding out about our Neighbourhood Fund, June applied, and we provided cooking equipment so that each and every Brownie could learn to bake, just as June wished. The Brownies were very excited to take their cakes home with them – they certainly looked yummy!

 

Mid-Cornwall Lifestyles Many of us enjoy coming together for a Christmas Quiz event in the run up to the big day. We were very excited to be invited to Mid Cornwall Lifestyles online event and to be shown just one of the ways they have used our Neighbourhood Fund. Mid Cornwall Lifestyles is a charity that focuses on bringing independence to those aged 16 and over, living with disabilities. Their support usually incorporates home visits, social outings and support with medical appointments and day-to-day tasks. During the pandemic they had to quickly adapt to supporting their clients without being able to meet face-to-face. This they did brilliantly by delivering digital and social media events, and training up their staff and clients in digital inclusivity.

Not only did this mean that their clients were still receiving the support they needed, they were also able to connect digitally with family that were unable to visit them. As the pandemic continued, and more lockdowns were announced, they were in desperate need of more funding to help develop and consistently deliver this new type of support. That’s when they applied to our Neighbourhood Fund, and because of the huge, positive difference they are making in people’s lives, we jumped at the chance to support them.