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Micro-grants for grassroots groups in Bristol
A grassroots organisation delivering food for people in need and a support group for single mums are among the recipients of new micro-grant funding.
The Care Forum’s Voice and Influence Partnership has set up a scheme specifically designed to back work within one or more of Bristol’s diverse communities.
The VIP BME Community Fund awards micro-grants of £250 to groups and organisations at a grassroots level that need a bit of financial support, without requiring them to go through lengthy application processes.
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Rachel de Garang, Voice and Influence Partnership BME engagement worker, says: “We are excited to have launched the fund and to have had so many brilliant applications. We wanted to be able to provide funding that was available through a simple process without a lot of the conditions and requirements that can mean small community organisations or grassroots groups are blocked from applying.
“Although they are micro-grants, what these groups can achieve with £250 is amazing and will directly benefit the communities they work with and support.”
Rachel de Garang says community groups can achieve a lot with a micro-grant – photo by Olumide Osinoke
The first four awards went to:
· Humanitarian Bristol for a Diversify Food Project, where the funding will help to buy cultural and religiously appropriate essential food items, including Halal and Kosher, to create food parcels for people.
· Health and Wellbeing at Sadaqa; a group that supports single mothers to look after their own health and wellbeing, by reducing isolation and enabling access to group exercise sessions. The fund will help cover the cost of a crèche.
· Imayla CIC for a Stepping out project. The money will support the running of a monthly walk, which enables families to connect with nature and take exercise, but also go ‘outside of their comfort zone’ into areas of the city they would not normally visit.
· St Werburgh’s Community Association; for a ‘Race – the Human Race’ project, which will include an exhibition, online talks, short publications and sharing stories from black and minority ethnic users. The fund will support the design and print costs for artwork and photos, which will go on permanent display in the community centre.
Anira Khokhar says the money will go a long way to providing culturally appropriate foods for people in need – photo courtesy of Anira Khokhar
Speaking about the difference the micro-grant will make for her organisation, Anira Khokhar, the founder of Humanitarian Bristol, said: “This money will go a long way to providing culturally appropriate foods for BME communities, either essential items or cooked food. It is important for their mental health and wellbeing to be able to create meals of their choice they would normally eat and feed their families.
“Demand is high, food is so expensive to buy, especially for bigger families, those that have been laid off from work or on furlough and their salaries have dropped.
“There is a serious demand for what we offer, so we are going to continue to see how we can source further funding and provide bespoke food parcels.”
A second round of the VIP BME Community Fund, offering four more micro-grants will take place in October 2020. More information is available via www.thecareforum.org/voice-influence-partnership/.
Main photo of Xavier Hudhaifa Farooq packing boxes for Humanitarian Bristol – Photo courtesy of Anira Khokhar
Read more: The grassroots group taking on a citywide challenge
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