Community Support Fund grants for local organisations
For the second time this year the Council has given Community Support Fund grants totalling £100,000 to organisations that are working hard to support residents.
Organisations providing support for those still feeling the after-effects of the Covid-19 pandemic were invited to apply for a grant towards specific projects, the expansion of existing services due to a growth in demand or new needs that have been identified.
In September a cross-party committee of councillors agreed five grants of £20,000 each for
- Nourish Community Foodbank
- Home-Start South West Kent
- West Kent Mind
- TW Counselling Centre/YMCA
- Church parish larders (Christ Church, St Matthew’s, St Paul’s, St Philip’s and The Baptist Church)
Councillor Astra Birch, Cabinet Member for Housing & Communities said: ‘I am so pleased that we have been able to support five fantastic charities with the Community Support Fund grants – the awards are all going to organisations that do amazing work across the borough at a time when so many are still facing financial or other hardship.’
In their grant application Nourish explained the grant will be used to give eligible residents who have pre-payment meters vouchers to help with fuel costs.
Home Start will provide preventative holistic support for vulnerable families who live in Tunbridge Wells and who have children aged five and under and who are in financial crisis. Families will be matched with trained volunteers who visit every week and provide practical and emotional support. Volunteers help families overcome challenges and provide children with safe, nurturing childhoods.
West Kent Mind will provide a new community based programme to provide early mental health support for children and young people across Tunbridge Wells at risk of suicide, self-harm or mental health crisis.
The Tunbridge Wells Counselling Centre will partner with YMCA to offer a counselling service to the young people currently residing in Ryder House, Tunbridge Wells, who are desperately in need of mental health support.
The church parish larders already support between 1,500-2,000 people weekly with food, the grant will help them continue their work.
The Community Support Fund was established by councillors in 2023 in response to the cost-of-living crisis which impacts upon many of the most vulnerable households in the borough.
