Community called upon to help unlock £3m in grant funding for Barrow

WE are stronger together! That is the message from Barrow Borough Council leaders as they call upon the community to help in securing a £3million government funding boost. Town Hall staff are…

WE are stronger together!

That is the message from Barrow Borough Council leaders as they call upon the community to help in securing a £3million government funding boost.

Town Hall staff are working on a bid for money from the Community Renewal Fund - and want businesses, education providers, voluntary and community groups to get involved.

The plan is to deliver a collaborative application for funding, which will help drive new initiatives and projects, while investing in skills, local businesses and helping people into employment.

A spokesperson for Barrow Borough Council said: “One of our strongest assets locally is our deep and meaningful community links, and we have witnessed the power of these over the last 12 months, as groups, businesses and individuals have worked hand in hand to deliver a whole host of services and support during the pandemic.

“We want to build on this strong collaboration by putting together a bid that is owned by the community for the community.

“In doing so we believe we will prove that we have the commitment and ability to make the most of the Community Renewal Fund and bring more funding into the Borough.

“Please get in touch to be part of this exciting opportunity. Together we are strong and can make a real difference in our community by working collaboratively”.

Work on the bid is being led by the Barrow Local Resilience Forum (BCLRF) which already has a strong list of possible projects it is considering for inclusion.

But the Forum believes that a co-ordinated and collaborative bid will put Barrow Borough organisations at the front of the queue for funding and is urging any community group, business or organisation which is already in the process of formulating a bid, to get in touch to get involved in the collective effort.

The Community Renewal Fund is a forerunner of the Shared Prosperity Fund that will go some way to fill the gap of EU Funds that are no longer available in Barrow Borough’s communities.

It aims to support people and communities most in need across the UK to pilot programmes and new approaches and will invest in skills, community and place, local business, and supporting people into employment.

Schemes and projects in the following areas are examples of those which will be considered for funding:

  • Investment in skills: Work-based training, retraining, upskilling/reskilling, promote digital skills and inclusion.

  • Investment for local business: Supporting entrepreneurs, to create more jobs, to develop innovation potential and decarbonisation measures.

  • Investment in communities and place: Feasibility studies for delivering net-zero/local energy projects, for promoting culture-led regeneration, community development, improving green spaces and preserving important local assets, rural connectivity.

  • Supporting people into employment: Supporting people on their journey towards employment, identifying/addressing barriers to employment/moving closer to the labour market, developing basic skills, testing what works in helping people move towards work.

The BCLRF is working to a tight deadline for the funding application so interested parties are asked to get in touch urgently with details of their proposed scheme or funding bid.

Contact Alec Proffitt on aproffitt@barrowbc.gov.uk or Tracey Ingham on tracey.ingham@cumbria.gov.uk for more information.

The deadline for expressions of interest is Monday May 17.