Over £530,000 has been awarded to 10 local charities
26th August 2021
Home-Start Essex and Southend in Sight are among 10 local voluntary organisations to receive a share of £530,000, awarded from the Mid & South Essex Community Partnership Grants Programme.
The Programme has been administered locally by the independent charitable trust, Essex Community Foundation (ECF), working with the Mid & South Essex Hospitals Charity, Mid and South Essex Health Care Partnership and NHS Charities Together.
Grants of between £30,000 and £80,000 are being awarded to help communities that have been disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, giving a much-needed boost to local charities in this challenging time, and whose work is helping to reduce the demand on NHS services.
The funded organisations support local residents, including children and young people, older people, families, those with disabilities, homeless people and carers.
Andy Payne Worpole, Head of Programmes at ECF, said: “Working together with our partners means that the money generously donated during the NHS Charities Together COVID-19 Appeal has the greatest impact.
“The grants awarded will support a diverse range of community groups that are making a difference to the lives of people of all ages and backgrounds in mid and South Essex. The organisations to receive grants are:
- BOSP Brighter Opportunities for Special People, in Basildon, have been funded to provide counselling and a respite service for children with disabilities and life limiting illnesses, who are unable to attend school during the pandemic
- CARA Centre for Action on Rape and Abuse offer counselling to survivors of sexual violence across mid and south Essex
- Dial South Essex have received funding to support disabled people of all ages, their carers and families
- Home-Start Essex are being supported to provide mental health and wellbeing support to expectant and new parents or parents with pre-school children
- SNAP have been funded for their family support service informing and empowering parents with special needs or disabled children across South Essex
- South Essex Advocacy Services have been supported to fund the extension for the ‘Hospital to Home’ service, including older people with significant support needs in Basildon, Rochford and Southend
- Southend In Sight are working in a partnership called Essex Vision to improve and increase the support offered to visually impaired people
- Yellow Door Youth Hub have received funding to provide counselling, mentoring, and social activities for young people, aged 11 to 25, on Canvey Island
- CHESS have been funded to help people across Chelmsford, Braintree, Maldon and Rochford who are homeless or rough sleepers
- Southend Carers’ Forum engage with local unpaid carers with a focus on underrepresented groups including young carers, those from Black, Asian, Minority Ethic communities and male carers
Alan Tobias OBE, Chair of Mid and South Essex Hospitals Charity, said: “I have passed on my congratulations to the successful organisations and I wished them well with their planned work. I am really pleased we have been able to deliver the programme and look forward to seeing the organisations work in partnership with the community of Mid & South Essex.”
Professor Mike Thorne CBE, Chair of Mid and South Essex Health & Care Partnership said: “I am delighted such a varied group of local organisations in Mid and South Essex will be able to support and help make a difference to the lives of those in our communities that have been impacted most by the pandemic, thanks to our community grants programme funded by NHS Charities Together.”
“Essex Vision”, four local sight loss charities, are working together to address the needs of the visually impaired community who have been affected by COVID-19. They will use the grant to provide outreach, wellbeing activities, information and support, helping to reduce isolation and increase confidence as we come out of the pandemic.
Lucy Martin, Chief Executive of Southend in Sight, on behalf of Essex Vision and the four charities said: “We are all thrilled to be working together across Mid & South Essex to help visually impaired people build their confidence as society begins to open up.
“It has been particularly difficult for many to navigate their way through the pandemic and as small local charities we can now provide the much needed one to one support to help those most in need.”
For more information about applying to ECF for a grant, click here.