Community Resilience Fund

Young girl in a blue shirt wearing upside-down glasses. A small child is behind looking over her shoulder and block of flats is in the background

Community Resilience Fund 2021

The Community Resilience Fund has now been fully allocated and is closed to applications.

In 2020 Gloucester County Council and Cheltenham Borough Council formed a partnership to support local community groups to tackle the Covid-19 crisis head on. In total £100k was granted to support 51 local efforts.

Given that the pandemic has continued longer than we could have imagined, and the impacts of it continue to be felt deeply in communities, Gloucestershire County Council has provided an additional £50,000 to Cheltenham Borough Council to launch the fund again in 2021.

This revived grant pot will be distributed to local voluntary and community organisations to support their continued efforts in supporting people and communities made vulnerable due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The fund will also support recovery efforts within communities, particularly projects that build on what we’ve valued most during the crisis, whilst working to ensure that post-crisis Cheltenham is a place where everyone thrives.

Cheltenham Borough Council aims to make decisions about funding as quickly as possible.

Funding criteria

The funding will be distributed to local voluntary and community groups who meet at least one of the following criteria:

  • Groups that are supporting (or who will be) people and communities made vulnerable due to the Covid-19 pandemic including:
    • Those working with particular communities which could include the clinically extremely vulnerable (CEV), older people, people from Black Asian and Minority Ethnic communities, people with disabilities and young people
    • Those that are providing much needed food or welfare support
  • Groups that are involved (or who will be) in recovery efforts within our communities including:
    • Those groups supporting individuals and groups to regain independence and to increase confidence as we move out of lockdown.
    • Those groups that are looking to return to delivering Covid-secure community activities

Who can apply?

  • Community or voluntary groups
  • Registered charities
  • Community interest companies
  • Town and Parish councils

How much can be applied for?

Although there is no upper-limit for grant applications; we do want to ensure that there is a fair distribution of the fund across VCS organisations in Cheltenham. Therefore please contact us if you want to make a bid for over £2,000.

The fund cannot be used to:

  • Support the mainstream activities of an organisation that are not related to supporting people and communities made vulnerable due to the Covid-19 pandemic
  • To create an ongoing funding commitment from the county council or borough council
  • Any events or activities of a political nature
  • Projects being delivered outside the boundaries of Cheltenham borough
  • Projects that cannot demonstrate that the necessary permissions will be achieved within the appropriate timescales

Grants previously allocated

Community Resilience Grants allocated 2020

  • St Philip and St James Area Resident's Association: SPJARA volunteers project - £209.06.
  • Listening Post Christian Counselling Service: Remote counselling project - £450.00.
  • St Michael's Cornerstone Trust: Online community support project - £1,198.00.
  • Gloucestershire Counselling: Remote counselling project - £2,000.00.
  • CCP: Emergency foodbank project - £4,951.68.
  • The Reddings Residents' Association: Volunteer support group - £300.00.
  • The Rock: Online support and contact project - £1,099.00.
  • Family Space in Hesters Way Ltd: Feed Cheltenham project - £1,500.00.
  • Springbank Community Group: Springbank community group foodbank project - £4,900.00.
  • The Long Table: Feeding Change CIC: Frozen food project - £2,000.00.
  • Hollie Gazzard Trust: Hollie guard project - £799.90.
  • Gloucestershire Deaf Association: Covid-19 mail out project - £1,302.69.
  • Youth for Christ Gloucestershire: Online youth club project - £770.00.
  • Cheltenham YMCA: Vittoria walk project - £1,400.00.
  • Young Gloucestershire: Cheltenham youth work project - £5,000.00.
  • The Cheltenham Trust: Roaming arts project - £1,000.00.
  • 4th Cheltenham Boys Brigade: Monthly care pack project - £500.00.
  • The Hygiene Bank: To purchase more collection bins to increase drop off points for donations, and purchase storage boxes to organise the storage facility - £1,407.00.
  • Cheltenham Poetry festival: Poetry in a pandemic - £1,000.00.
  • National Star: PPE Project - £1,000.00.
  • Infobuzz: Cheltenham counselling project - £5,000.00.
  • Rendezvous Society: Refills shop project - £1,380.00.
  • Building Circles: Volunteer led contact service and newsletter production - £1,800.00.
  • Cheltenham International Film Trust: Online film making workshop project - £3,000.00.
  • St Philip and St James Church Leckhampton: Digital equipment project - £405.00.
  • The Indian Association: Community Centre social distancing project - £500.00.
  • The Abbeyfield Gloucestershire Society Limited: Online activities project - £1,996.00.
  • Vision 21: PPE Project - £497.00.
  • Men in Sheds C&G: PPE Project - £720.00.
  • Boys Brigade: Care pack project - £750.00.
  • Little Explorers: Pre School Covid-19 support project - £496.00.
  • Battledown Friends Group: Covid-19 ICT project - £798.00.
  • Cheltenham Housing Aid Centre: Online housing advice to those who have become homeless or have suffered as a direct result of the pandemic - £2,000.00.
  • East Gloucestershire Club: Bike rack project - £684.00.
  • St Philip and St James Church Leckhampton: Covid-19 digital equipment project - £801.03.
  • Family Space: Feed Cheltenham partnership project - £1,500.00.
  • Cotswold Down Syndrome Group: To support 20, Cheltenham based, Down Syndrome families with emotional well-being, of both the parents and children - £1,431.89.
  • St Gregory’s Childcare Trust: Therapeutic services for children who have been identified as having mental health issues as a result of the pandemic - £4,500.00.
  • Sandford Parks Lido: Bicycle parking project - £979.78.
  • Every Cloud Play and Creative Arts Therapy: Therapeutic services project - £3,800.00.
  • Springbank Community Group: Springbank foodbank project - £10,000.00.
  • Cheltenham Autism Support: Facebook support group project - £1,700.00.
  • SPJARA: Leaflet drop project - £195.00.
  • Bethesda Methodist Church: Creative Age Project - £2,375.00.
  • The Cheltenham Trust: Community takeover exhibition - £6,000.00.
  • Family Space: Holiday hunger scheme project - £2,500.00.
  • Cheltenham Paint Festival: Cheltenham paint festival - £4,000.00.
  • Chinese Children and Parents Association Ltd: Online teaching project - £2,980.00.
  • St Peter’s and The Moors Big Local: Cheltenham Saracens project - £450.00.
  • 1st Charlton Kings Boys Brigade: Emotional wellbeing project - £460.00.
  • SPJARA: Notice board project - £581.00.
  • Friends of Charlton Kings: Charlton Kings Covid-19 support and recovery project - £4,285.00.

Total grants allocated - £101,352.03.