Over £7.3 million funding agreed for voluntary and community groups

More than £7.3 million of funding over the next three years has been approved for Lewisham’s voluntary and community groups.

The grants, worth £2.46m a year were agreed at Lewisham’s latest Mayor and Cabinet meeting and will be used to support bodies helping with the borough’s Covid-19 recovery as well as fund other organizations.

Councillor Kim Powell, Cabinet Member for Business and Community Wealth Building, said: “Our voluntary and community sector has been vital in supporting local residents throughout the pandemic and in the borough’s ongoing recovery.

With the help of the sector, which is so ingrained in our communities, we have been able to achieve so much more than we could simply by working alone.”

“I am delighted that we will continue to fund them through our Main Grants Programme. I am proud of the huge variety of the organizations within Lewisham that are doing such vital work for residents.”

She said the funding has been set with three key priorities in mind – an economically sound future, a healthy and well future, and a future that citizens have a part in.

Lewisham’s Main Grants programme, through which this fund has been granted, has been operational for over 20 years. It has been providing crucial funding for organisations delivering a wide range of services throughout the years.

Within that programme, an additional £180,000 has been allocated to fund four Community Fundraiser posts.

These posts will help generate more funding for the borough’s voluntary organisations, help the sector become more sustainable and to allow organisations to benefit from wider funding across London.

Councillor Powell said: “We know many local groups are still facing significant financial pressures, so the new community fundraising team will help them access additional external funding and ensure that Lewisham’s voluntary and community sector continues to thrive. In a tough climate of budget cuts from central government, we need to find innovative ways to maximise every penny.”

Jane Hendrie, Director of Lewisham Education Arts Network (LEAN) said: “LEAN is delighted and eager to host one of the Community Fundraiser posts. The arts have a long tradition of working together to create innovative, enriching and joyful creative projects for the people of Lewisham, and this Fundraiser will enable us all to do much, much more.”

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