The Barnet Council-led Community Innovation Fund (CIF), which is majority funded by the Barnet Integrated Care Partnership, has awarded nearly £130,000 in grants to local projects that are helping residents and communities improve their overall health and wellbeing.
Citizens Advice Barnet (CAB) stall
Local NHS acute and community trusts, North Central London CCG and Barnet Council have shared a pot of £126,460 to invest in projects including supporting unpaid carers, online art classes for older people experiencing isolation, developing employability skills, and dance classes for older people to aid mobility.
Nearly 40 organisations applied for a grant when the Barnet Integrated Care Partnership’s CIF pilot scheme was launched in spring 2021 as a joint initiative with the NHS and the volunteer and community sectors represented by Barnet Together. The fund aims to improve health and wellbeing in the borough.
The seven winning applicants were: Arts Depot; Barnet Citizens Advice Bureau; Community Focus Inclusive Arts; Community Network Group; Stonegrove Community Trust; Twining Enterprise; and Westminster Roman Catholic Diocese Trustee.
Dr Tamara Djuretic, Joint Director of Public Health and Prevention, said:
“We’ve set up the Community Innovation Fund with our local NHS partners. In a first round we awarded grants to seven fantastic community projects that will make a big difference to many Barnet residents. Our thriving community and voluntary sector is closest to understanding local needs and we are delighted to see great engagement across the borough in helping us to combat COVID-19 longer term health and wellbeing impact.
“We will be inviting applications for the second round of funding in October, this time with a pot of £320,000 and will invite all organisations helping our residents to apply for a grant.”
Louise Broadbent, Business Development Manager at Citizens Advice Barnet, said:
“We’re truly grateful to the Barnet Community Innovation Fund for funding our new partnership with BOOST. Their investment is enabling us to work in a completely new way by funding an adviser who is embedded within the BOOST team. We’re now able to help people who are financially vulnerable by working much more closely together, enabling people to keep their jobs, improving their employability, find work and access any other support they need, all of which improves people’s wellbeing.”
Following the success of the CIF pilot scheme, the second round will open for applications on 1 October 2021 and will close at 5pm on Monday 1 November, with £320,000 available. The decision panel will review all applications and prioritise innovative projects that are focused on mental health and tackling loneliness, improving equality and inclusion, supporting children and young people, and enhancing green spaces for healthy leisure.
Local community and voluntary organisations working in Barnet with residents on identified priorities can contact CIF project manager Marta Montague on CommunityInnovationFund@Barnet.gov.uk to register interest in the fund, ask more questions or to be kept up to date about the workshops.