20 new local social action partnerships announced

12 Mar 2018 11:36 AM

The Big Lottery Fund and Department of Digital, Culture Media and Sport (DCMS) yesterday announced the 20 partnerships taking part in the first stage of the Placed Based Social Action programme launched last October.

The 20 partnerships selected to take part in the first phase of the programme are based in diverse areas across England, including Hackney, Poole and the Wirral. They will now have support to develop social action plans designed to address issues important to their local communities.

The Placed Based Social Action programme is funded using £4.5 million of Government and National Lottery money.

It aims to support communities to put social action at the heart of plans which make a positive difference in the local area. It gives people the opportunity to contribute meaningfully to the design and delivery of local services by bringing together communities, local authorities, public sector organisations, service providers, civil society organisations and businesses to address local priorities.

Between now and December 2018, the 20 partnerships will work with Locality, the national network for community organisations that bring local people together to meet local needs, to design their local social action plan.

In early 2019, up to 10 of these 20 partnerships will go on to be awarded funding of up to £240,000 for three years to put their plans into action. Following this, up to five of these partnerships will be awarded further funding of up to £255,000 to develop and expand their plans for another three years to December 2024.

Dawn Austwick, Chief Executive of the Big Lottery Fund, said: “This programme is about supporting communities to work together to tackle the social issues that matter in their area. It is designed to ensure solutions are created by local people for local people and we’re looking forward to seeing how these plans develop over the next year.”

Tracey Crouch, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Sport and Civil Society, said: "Communities lie at the heart of our commitment to build a society that works for everyone. This investment, bolstered by partnerships, will create positive change as people work together to develop solutions to overcome local issues in their area.”

Examples of social action plans being developed include:

• Poole Council for Voluntary Service and its partners will be leading the development of a plan to encourage older people to be active in their local community, with the number of over 85-year-olds in the town set to increase by a third (33%) over the next ten years. This plan being developed will aim to get people volunteering to befriend older people so they can access activities, become more independent and live more fulfilled lives.
• In New Ferry on the Wirral, New Beginnings New Ferry will be working with the local Town Team to use social action to empower the local community following a gas explosion last year, which had a devastating impact on the town centre and the surrounding residential streets. The plan being developed will look at how social action can support the new Neighbourhood Resource and Support Centre and youth facilities, including a community café, for young people to come together, socialise and learn new skills.
• In Hackney, London, which has the highest rate of isolation (11.4%) in the UK, Volunteer Centre Hackney, Hackney Council and partners will be bringing communities together to design and deliver solutions to tackle the problem. The plan being developed will aim to create strong relationships and friendships within neighbourhoods, addressing loneliness and alienation.

Place Based Social Action will run until 2025 and is administered by the Big Lottery Fund, in partnership with DCMS.

The 20 partnerships taking part in the first phase of the programme are based in:

• Bristol, led by Hartcliffe and Withywood Community Partnership
• Calderdale, led by Halifax Opportunities Trust
• Cherwell, led by Oxfordshire Community Foundation
• Colchester, led by Community360
• Coventry, led by Grapevine Coventry and Warwickshire
• Hackney, led by Volunteer Centre Hackney
• Hammersmith and Fulham, led by Hammersmith United Charities
• Hartlepool, led by the Jospeh Rowntree Foundation
• Havant, led by Southern Domestic Abuse Service
• Islington, led by Hanley Crouch Community Association
• Lincoln, led by Lincoln City FC Sport & Education Trust
• North East Lincolnshire, led by North East Lincolnshire VCSE Alliance
• Poole, led by Poole Council for Voluntary Service
• Portsmouth, led by Citizens Advice Portsmouth
• Sefton, led by Safe Regeneration
• South Hams, led by South Hams Community and Voluntary Service
• Test Valley, led by Test Valley Community Services
• Thurrock, led by Thurrock CVS
• West Somerset, led by Watchet Coastal Community Team
• The Wirral, led by New Beginnings New Ferry

Contact:

Esther Rush: esther.rush@biglotteryfund.org.uk / 020 7211 1785
Press Office: 020 7211 1888
Out of hours media contact: 07867 500572

Notes to Editors:

The Big Lottery Fund uses money raised by National Lottery players to help communities achieve their ambitions. From small, local projects to UK-wide initiatives, our funding brings people together to make a difference to their health, wellbeing and environment. Since June 2004 we have awarded £8.5 billion to projects that improve the lives of millions of people.