Charity cash boost through water company’s new community incentive
9th December 2021
Essex & Suffolk Water has launched a charity cash boost initiative and is asking customers to play their part in deciding where future funding goes.
Tens of thousands of pounds will be donated every year through Essex & Suffolk Water’s new community scheme – Drop Swap – the first of its kind for the company.
The initiative puts customers in the driving seat with deciding where donations to nominated charitable causes go on a bi-monthly basis and all by simply using the utility company’s free app.
Essex & Suffolk Water’s app is available for customers to use around the clock to access services, such as updating their water meter readings and making account payments at a time that suits them. By using the app customers will be rewarded with ‘e-drops’ to vote for their local charity of choice and can nominate other charitable causes to benefit from future support.
Louise Hunter, who is Essex & Suffolk Water’s Corporate Affairs Director, said: “We already support our local communities in many ways – gifting time and expertise via our amazing employee volunteers to donating cash and equipment to community and environmental projects.
“The Drop Swap initiative is a fantastic addition to the great support we give our communities and it will help the charitable causes that matter the most to our customers. The idea originally came from a session with our customers at our 2019 Innovation Festival and so I’m especially pleased to see it brought to life as a great example of how our customers can shape how we deliver our services.
“We want to help as many deserving causes as possible, through this funding channel, across our local communities of Essex, Suffolk and London Boroughs. So that’s why I’m urging all of our customers to download and start using our free app to help the causes that are close in their hearts.”
The utility company asked its customers and employees which issues they felt were most important to their communities, and where it could make the most positive difference. The key areas were named as eradicating water poverty, supporting water for health and improving the water environment.
Charities and projects supporting these three areas will benefit from the Drop Swap fund and will also be offered some help from the company’s employee volunteering programme, Just an Hour.
Essex & Suffolk Water is extending its longstanding working partnership of delivering thousands of pounds worth of project grant funding with the support of the Essex Community Foundation, who will help to deliver this cash funding boost to charitable causes across the whole of its operating area.
Andy Payne Warpole, Head of Programmes at Essex Community Foundation, said: “We are pleased to support Essex & Suffolk Water, as one of our fundholders, to further engage with their customers and to promote the work of local charities.”
For more information on the company’s Drop Swap initiative, visit: www.eswater.co.uk/app and in your android or iOS app store by searching for ‘Essex & Suffolk Water’.
If you are an Essex-based voluntary organisation in need of funding, please contact our grants team on 01245 356018 or email grants@essexcf.org.uk
New grants help grassroots groups get connecting
3rd December 2021
A series of grants have been awarded to help groups and charities get active in the community again.
The awards by the Braintree District and Eastlight Community Fund, set up by Braintree District Council and Eastlight Community Homes with the independent charitable trust Essex Community Foundation (ECF), are for grassroots projects that make a big difference for people in the district.
They are being used to organise exciting trips for more than 60 scouts, pay for new tools at a community shed, hire space for a baby and toddler group and create a community garden.
Wethersfield Community Activities has been awarded £1,500 to fund three years of hall hires for its bumps, baby and toddler group. Donations can now be used to create extra events and buy more fun toys and activities.
Trustee Becky Wilson said the free sessions were often the only opportunity for parents in the village to meet up. She said: “It’s been incredible for the mental health of the mums. You can see the difference in the parents from when the first started to now.”
Cressing Temple Community Shed has used its grant of £1,932 to buy tools including screwdrivers, a saw and nail guns to replace ageing equipment.
The 25 members meet three times a week in a converted shed at the historic venue to build everything from planters and birdboxes to a sledge for Santa to use at a charity’s children’s Christmas party.
John Wilson, vice chair, said while the shed was open to all, many members were retired men who live alone following a bereavement.
He said: “We come along to get ourselves out of the house and have someone to talk to. You don’t have to make anything – if you just want to have a chat then you can.”
A grant of £600 will help the Earls Colne branch of Incredible Edible to create a community garden near the village’s town hall to be used by residents of Grammar School House residential home and, potentially, pupils from the village’s primary school.
Last year, the group began growing fruit and vegetables in a donated plot of land on the High Street and leaving them for anyone to pick up, cook and eat.
Jayne Meleschko said the group had already grown from six to 15 members and had been donated greenhouse space to grow more.
She said: “I’ve met an awful lot of people through it and because the garden’s right on the High Street we often spend more time talking to people going past than we do on gardening. That’s the joy of it.”
1st Silver End Scouts have been awarded £2,000 and will use it to for activity-packed trips for more than 60 youngsters to the Peak District, Bournemouth and Wales are affordable.
Phil Kilburn, assistant scout leader, said the youngsters had met up over Zoom during the pandemic but much preferred taking part in activities and seeing each other in person.
He added: “Now we’re back face to face, our numbers are booming again. Children really just want to get out, spend time with each other and get active.”
Isedale WA CIC have received £3,500 to run a mentoring and support programme for Black, Asian and minority ethnic teenagers.
James Green, Eastlight’s Community Investment Director, said: “Congratulations to all the wonderful community groups out there who are doing so much to support local people. It’s brilliant to see these grants being used to help people connect again after such a difficult couple of years.”
Cllr Frankie Ricci, Cabinet member for Communities at Braintree District Council, said: “It is great that this latest round of funding is helping our communities connect again and supporting projects that bring people together. It is an important tool in combating loneliness and improving emotional health and wellbeing.”
Andy Payne Worpole, Head of Programmes at ECF, said: “We are pleased to manage this Fund which provides such a great resource for grassroot charities and groups that need a smaller amount of funding to make a big difference in their communities.”
A panel of Eastlight Community Homes and Braintree District Council representatives are meeting again to consider the applications of eight further charities which have applied for grants of up to £40,000.
To find out how your business can set up a Fund to help your local community, click here.
To apply for a grant, visit our Apply for Support page.
Online lessons are teaching English to people in West Essex
16th November 2021
People in West Essex who are migrants and refugees are receiving increased support to help improve their English language skills and integrate into their local communities, thanks to a local charity.
Integration Support Services (ISS) was founded in 2005 by a group of refugees and migrants and has recently received £20,000 from the independent charitable trust, Essex Community Foundation (ECF), to run a series of English as a Second Language (ESOL) classes online.
Their work focuses on supporting the successful integration of migrants, refugees, ethnic minority communities and groups in Essex and Hertfordshire.
They also provide employment advice, help in filling out forms and family and one-to-one drop-in sessions.
Sangita Mittra, chief executive of ISS, said: “Many of our clients speak very limited English and are unable to access mainstream services or take part in their new local community due to language barriers.
“The classes improve our learners understanding of both written and verbal English, helping them to advocate, integrate, and gain paid employment for themselves, without needing to rely on interpreters, whilst reducing the need for public assistance.
“We also offer advice and guidance on a range of topics and with our current staff and volunteer capacity we can provide multi-lingual support for up to 15 languages.”
If you are a client and require help with any issues relating to integration, please call ISS on 01279 639442.
If you are a local voluntary organisation that is in need of funding to support your work, please call our grants team on 01245 356018 or click here to apply.
Community garden in Loughton to flourish thanks to funding boost
20th October 2021
A volunteer community garden project in Loughton has received a welcome funding boost to continue providing healthy outdoor activities for local people and support mental well-being.
Restore Community (RC) received £4,000 from the independent charitable trust, Essex Community Foundation (ECF).
RC supports people of all ages and helps to meet the needs of local communities in West Essex. As well as their impressive community garden, they run the Oakwood Hill Community Centre in Debden where a range of activities for children and young people take place, including holiday clubs where the children who would normally receive free school meals can engage in crafts, sports and they also receive a hot lunch.
In addition, they offer support services for vulnerable residents and those needing help with accessing local services.
Jo Mackey, Head of Restore Community said, “All of the projects benefit the local community, including low-income families who are unable to afford the mainstream playgroups and activities for their children. The Community Garden has been particularly helpful to people who have felt isolated after the COVID-19 pandemic and who have found a sense of well-being by being able to volunteer.
“Everything we have achieved in the GROW Garden has been the collective effort of people in the community who have come together and volunteered their time to create this inclusive and supportive space.
“The social connections and friendships formed are an important part of our project and this helps to combat social isolation.
“The Garden is open twice a week and we also host a group of adults with learning difficulties and a group of young people with special educational needs and complex disabilities who work alongside our community volunteers.
“We love growing organic fruit and vegetables together and everyone who joins us experiences the benefits of social connection, physical activity and teamwork.”
The High Sheriff of Essex, Simon Brice, visited the community garden and surprised Brian, a garden volunteer, by presenting him with a High Sheriff certificate.
This was in recognition of Brian’s dedication and contribution to the gardening project.
Simon said: “This Award is thoroughly well-deserved. Brian is one of their core volunteers and I was told that he always goes the ‘extra mile’.
“Brian attends every session, all year round, and helps the other volunteers, some of whom have special needs and disabilities, to ensure that they can meaningfully take part and contribute to the project.
“He brings vast experience and knowledge of both gardening and construction to the site and during my visit I was very impressed with the brilliant work that is being done at GROW. They have such a positive impact in the local community and help to bring people together.”
Jo added, “Brian is a real asset to the community garden – he is the brains, the brawn and the heart of all that we do.”
If you are a local charity or voluntary organisation that is in need of funding to support your work, please contact ECF on 01245 356018 or click here for more information.
Leave a gift in your Will for everyone in Essex
Supporting local communities through us by leaving a legacy in your Will is becoming increasingly popular.
As well as making a difference now, your gift will last for many years to come and there are tax incentives when you give to charity in this way. If you are thinking about leaving a legacy, a good place to start is by talking to your professional adviser, or you can call us to talk through your ideas.
Here is a lovely story about a lady who made a generous bequest to us this year.
Gwendy Marrs Fund
Gwendy was born in 1930 and lived most of her 90 years in North Essex. From a young age she had a love of dancing and by her late teens she had become one of the high-kicking Tiller Girls made famous by the Royal Variety Performance at the London Palladium. She was a member of the dance troupe for four years, culminating in its 1952 tour of South Africa.
When she returned to Essex, Gwendy started work for the Colchester Lathe Company where she stayed for 31 years. After her husband Colin died in 1983, she resumed her love of performing and made appearances as an extra on many well-known TV series, including Hi-De-Hi and Lovejoy.
Gwendy is fondly remembered by all who knew her as a warm and exuberant personality, the life and soul of any gathering, and as someone who enjoyed her nearly 90 years to the full.
She was involved in many local community activities and we were delighted to receive a legacy from her. We look forward to keeping her memory alive through the Fund established in her name.
“Gwendy was such a wonderful lady who was full of enthusiasm for life. Dancing and performing were her passion, and she was always keen to be involved in local activities whether it was through the church or the croquet club.
“She had no children or close family to leave her estate to, so when I raised the idea of setting up a Fund in her name with ECF and leaving a legacy, Gwendy was so pleased that she could help people after she died, and that she would be remembered for years to come.” Fiona Ashworth, Thompson Smith and Puxon
We can help you support your local community in many ways. No matter which option you choose or what you want to achieve with your charitable giving, we make it easy for you to support a wide range of local voluntary organisations working at the grassroots of our communities.
To find out more about leaving a legacy please click here or call Perry Norton, Head of Development, on 01245 355947 or e-mail perry@essexcf.org.uk
Befriending programme helps to beat loneliness in West Essex
12th October 2021
A befriending scheme for those with life-limiting illnesses will help even more people in West Essex, thanks to grant of £10,000.
St. Clare Hospice, based in Hastingwood, has received the funding boost from the independent charitable trust Essex Community Foundation (ECF) for their ‘compassionate neighbours programme’.
The scheme connects people who are socially isolated due to life limiting illnesses or limited mobility from older age with members of the public, who volunteer their time to visit or call them regularly.
Julie Foster, from St. Clare Hospice, said: “The risk of social isolation has increased dramatically ever since COVID-19 took hold and we had been expanding our programme as much as possible to try and meet the growing demand, particularly in rural areas, but we have been limited by staff resource.
“This grant from ECF helped us to employ a full-time support worker who will expand our work matching local volunteers to members of the community by encouraging the building of genuine friendships through weekly visits or phone calls.”
Julie added, “The project benefits both parties – the compassionate neighbour and the community member. Many of our compassionate neighbours have experienced the loss of a loved one and are themselves lonely and isolated.”
Sylvy volunteers as a compassionate neighbour and said: “I had always wanted to give something back and when I found out about the scheme, and that I could start doing home visits to bring companionship, I knew this project was right for me. But it’s a two-way thing; it’s got to work for both people, and with Pam, my match, as soon as I walked in the door, I knew that this was right.”
If you would like to access support from compassionate neighbours or enquire about becoming a volunteer, please click here.
During the pandemic, St. Clare Hospice also launched a new bereavement helpline, established weekly counselling sessions for nursing and residential home care workers, and created new support materials to help people facing death and loss.
SUPPORT ECF’S ACORN FUND CHALLENGE and help charities like St. Clare Hospice.
ECF is running the ‘Acorn Fund Challenge’, appealing for donations and matching them on a 2 to 1 basis. This means that for every £2 received, ECF will add £1, and if Gift Aid can be claimed, it nearly doubles the value of donations.
- Give online through JustGiving
- To give by card over the phone call us on 01245 355947
- Send a cheque to Essex Community Foundation at 121 New London Road, Chelmsford CM2 0QT
- Speak to us if you want to make a donation by bank transfer or to set up a regular gift
For more information email Perry Norton: perry@essexcf.org.uk