Thanks to a successful Tamworth Borough Council bid, Tamworth communities have been awarded £251,342 in grant funding, from the government’s Covid outbreak management fund, managed locally by Staffordshire County Council.
13 projects, have each been awarded grants of between £2,000 and £70,500, with all monies to be spent by September 2024 tackling health inequalities - specifically benefiting the health and wellbeing of Tamworth residents.
The awards have been given to the following:
- Belgrave Allotment: £2,000, for the installation of an eco-composting timber toilet, to provide a sustainable designed composting toilet to the intergenerational groups who attend the community allotment and garden.
- Citizens Advice Mid Mercia: £40,500, to provide a Cost-of-Living Adviser Service, which will bolster existing information, advice and guidance services in Tamworth (including HOME Hub and Tamworth Advice Centre); and will target individuals and households who have been impacted by COVID-19, resulting in a risk of ill-health, or experiencing increased health inequalities due to the cost-of-living challenges.
- Community Together CIC: £13,754, to fund a Volunteer Coordinator to support Care Connect Volunteers within a local GP Practice who will provide daily sign posting and referrals for people needing non-medical support.
- Community Together CIC: £10,588, to cover costs for a 12-month lease of a 17-seater minibus, run by four volunteer drivers who will collect isolated people and take them to a scheduled daily activity.
- Community Together CIC: £8,000, to provide support to the hospital discharge service to help prepare patients homes for their return. The funding would pay for 10 house clearances as well as 20 home deep cleans.
- Active Tamworth: £70,500, to recruit a 12-month staffing post for the active project at Anker Valley Sports Complex, plus the purchase of a mobile unit, projector and screen, health screening equipment, generator, fruit and vegetables for distribution, silent disco and yoga equipment costs. The project will help to address low physical activity rates and high overweight and obesity rates in the borough.
- Holiday activities: £22,000, to increase the funding pot for the current free holiday activity programme run by Tamworth Borough Council during the school summer holidays, which aims to keep children active.
- Housing and hotspot areas: £25,906, to provide alternative funding for residents to support households with energy efficiency improvements, where Home Upgrade Grants are not applicable.
- Dehumidifiers loan scheme: £6,160, to purchase 10 dehumidifiers to be used in tenant properties that have been affected by damp and mould caused by condensation.
- Empty Homes Officer: £31,268, to recruit a dedicated Empty Homes Officer to oversee the empty homes policy development. The role will be responsible for bringing privately owned empty residential property across the borough, back into use, including enforcement, grants and loans, and promotional activity.
- Rough Sleepers Restart: £5,000, for the purchase of goods to support rough sleepers with moving into accommodation.
- Cooking lessons: £5,000, to cover hire costs of a chef, venue, cooking equipment and ingredients; for cooking lessons to be delivered to those living in supported housing facilities. The sessions will educate about food and health for children’s development, homemade meals and food shopping budgeting.
- Fun Food Company: £10,666, to fund up to 32 workshops in Tamworth Primary Schools, to raise awareness around healthy eating in a fun and interactive way.
Councillor Martin Summers, Portfolio Holder for Environmental Health and Community Partnerships, said: “Utilising the remaining of government Covid Outbreak Management Funding, has given us the ideal opportunity to make a difference to many people in Tamworth and help tackle health inequalities.
“Through working with our community groups and partners, the funds will deliver high priority projects that will support some of our most vulnerable residents and assist with helping families who are affected the most by the current cost of living crisis.”
More information about council and community grants can be found online at: www.tamworth.gov.uk/grants.