Nearly two-thirds of people think that community groups and projects, volunteers and charities deserve more recognition, according to new research.
The results published today by The National Lottery Community Fund suggests the coronavirus pandemic has helped to reignite people’s interest in their local community and sparked a desire to be more involved in 2021.
The survey of more than 7,000 UK adults asked they were feeling about their community and their ambitions for their local area for the year ahead.
It found that almost seven in 10 people said they felt part of their local community.
About a third said Covid-19 had increased their sense of belonging, with a similar proportion saying the pandemic had made it more important for them to feel part of the community.
Slightly more than a third of respondents said more support for community projects and charities was one of the things they most wanted to see in 2021, and 30 per cent said that they planned to get more involved in their local community.
A greater appreciation has come with a firmer sense of the challenges their community faces and what will be important over the coming year, the figures indicate.
Top priorities that people wanted to see addressed in their community over the coming year were reducing loneliness and isolation, identified by almost 47 per cent of respondents, followed by helping the local economy and supporting mental health.
Many of the changes people would like to see are also behavioural, with half of the people surveyed saying they should care and look out for each other more in 2021.
Faiza Khan, director of engagement and insight at the NLCF, said: “Last year so many communities up and down the country demonstrated the amazing things people can do to support each other during challenging times.
“This research shows the power of that collective endeavour and the profound impact on how we feel about the areas we live in and the people around us.”
For more community and charity information visit Third Sector.
The government should consider setting up “charitable action zones” that would feature bonuses on donations to charities in those areas , a new report suggests.
The Policies of Belonging, published by the think tank Onward, says that communities need to be “levelled up” in order to repair decaying social fabric.
The document says areas where “a fraying social fabric has become ingrained” need concerted, localised support.
Voluntary activity in those areas could be encouraged by the establishment of “charitable action zones”, where organisations would receive additional perks on donations made.
Charities in the proposed zones could benefit from ideas such as tax relief on corporate donations made to them, the report suggests.
“The government could match Gift Aid donations to charities registered in specific areas directly from the taxpayer, to give philanthropists an incentive to support causes in the specific parts of the country that need the most support or have the public will,” it says.
A further reduction in the rate of inheritance tax paid by people giving at least 10 per cent of their estate to a charity that carried out the bulk of its activity in a charitable zone should also be considered, the report says.
“While politicians rightly place a great deal of emphasis on the economic divide in our country, the disparity in social fabric is at least as great and requires an interlinked programme of policy to correct it,” the report says. “Put simply, we need to level up communities too.”
The project was supported by a cross-party steering group of MPs and policy experts chaired by the Conservative peer Lord James O’Shaughnessy.
To read more information please visit Third Sector.
The Business Charity Awards 2021 entries are now open, take this opportunity to showcase the people and teams behind amazing corporate/charity partnerships and their impactful work.
The coronavirus pandemic has had a dramatic impact on our working lives, and created a raft of challenges for the voluntary and not-for-profit sector, along with their corporate partners.
The Business Charity Awards recognise and reward the amazing work the sector has done to combat these challenges, and celebrates the teams behind it.
This year, there are 25 categories which you can enter into, spanning across sector, partnerships and teams. We’ve introduced two new Coronavirus categories, which aim to reward the outstanding CSR work completed throughout the pandemic.
If you’re worried about self-isolating and losing income, don’t worry. You can apply for financial support if you need to self-isolate and cannot work from home.
Essex Gov has provided an extra £3 million to borough, city and district councils across Essex to provide one-off support payments of £500 to people who aren’t eligible for the Government’s Test and Trace support payment.
Charities are able to apply from this week for £4m in government and National Lottery funding to combat loneliness.
The first round of applications for the Local Connections Fund opened on January 5 and close on 26 January. The fund is backed by £2m each from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) and the National Lottery Community Fund (NLCF).
The funding is being distributed in the form of ‘microgrants’ of between £300 and £2,500 and is available to small charities, with an annual income of £50,000 or less.
Successful applications must have spent the money and finished their project to tackle loneliness by the end of March 2021. A second round of funding will launch in summer.
BHIB Insurance works directly with charities and not-for-profits supporting and signposting information. Please see below guidance which may be helpful during this time;
Heritage organisations are being invited to apply for grants of up to £3m in the latest round of funding from the government’s £1.6bn Culture Recovery Fund.
Up to £300m is available in the second tranche of funds, which can be used to help organisations recover from the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.
It is open to heritage organisations managing a heritage site or visitor attraction, private owners of a heritage site, venue or attraction, and organisations managing, maintaining or caring for culturally significant assets or collections.
The aim of this phase of funding is to help organisations transition from the current lockdown into spring and early summer, when the government expects heritage organisations will be able to operate with fewer restrictions.
The AIM Group specialises in finding training and employment opportunities for those who want to reach their full potential. We work with a range of employers and training providers, allowing us to bring amazing opportunities to your fingertips! We have a friendly team of dedicated advisors, who are able to help find the perfect opportunity for you.
To find Third Sector apprenticeships and FREE online courses here.