£0.5Million Grants awarded in West Norfolk

The grants have been awarded by the Borough Council of King’s Lynn and West Norfolk and have been funded by the UK Government through UK Shared Prosperity funding.

The awards include almost £260,000 UK Shared Prosperity Funding grants which have been allocated across the themes of Communities and Place, or People and Skills to six projects:

• Restoring West Norfolk’s Peatlands for All – Norfolk Wildlife Trust has been awarded £33,262 for a project that will restore three of west Norfolk’s most important remaining peatlands (Roydon Common, Tony Hallett Memorial Reserve, and East Winch Common). This project will also see the development of a team of Peatland Champions who will play a role in the management, monitoring, and promotion of these sites.
• Active Communities Programme – Alive West Norfolk has received £49,600 which will see the delivery of activities across the borough at Alive West Norfolk venues. The free community events will benefit the wellbeing and physical health of residents.

Tommy Goode, Head of Performance and Development, Alive West Norfolk said:

“The UKSPF funding allows us to take free activities out to the community making activity accessible to all. We all know how important physical activity is for physical and mental wellbeing and these activities will support residents to be active.”

• VENI People & Place – Eastern Education Group has been awarded £50,000 for this project which will focus on developing the visitor economy in King’s Lynn and West Norfolk through events, community campaigns, and innovative networking. Eastern Education Group, working closely with the College of West Anglia will offer an exciting events programme and the opportunity for people to gain visitor economy skills. 
• Volunteer it Yourself – Volunteer it Yourself CIC has been awarded £46,725  for this project which will see three refurbishment projects at community facilities across the borough. The refurbishment works at each facility will be carried out by local young volunteers aged 16+ who are currently economically inactive/unemployed and disengaged or excluded from mainstream education and training. They will learn and apply vocational trade skills on the job whilst being mentored by, and working alongside, professional tradespeople.
• Tech Skills for Life – Norfolk County Council has been awarded £40,000 for this project which offers free one-to-one support for digital topics (e.g. NHS services, basic digital skills, online shopping), to increase confidence and enable residents to unlock the benefits of being online. Community tech coaches will provide support to learners who feel that they do not have digital skills and those who cannot afford to engage fully with the digital world.
• On Track – King’s Lynn and West Norfolk – The Matthew Project has been awarded £40,046 for this project which aims to reduce barriers to training and employment for 16-24-year-olds not in education, employment or training. The project will deliver a combination of one-to-one outreach coaching and follow-on employability-based activities and group work.

In addition, almost £243,000 has been announced for eight groups which will receive funds through the West Norfolk Community Capital Grants scheme. This funding aims to support the creation or improvement of buildings or equipment to enhance and strengthen community assets, facilities and local provision. Recipients of the funding are:

• Docking Playing Fields Association, awarded £48,080 to resurface and replace the current tennis court with a new Multi Use Games Area surface.
• Downham Stow Cricket Club, awarded £48,080 to install an artificial all-weather cricket training facility.
• Shouldham Bowls and Social Club, awarded £33,960 to improve the energy efficiency of the club and make it more sustainable to run.
• Snettisham Beach Sailing Club, awarded £19,000 to provide access to sailing for wheelchair users and individuals with limited mobility through the installation of an accessible pathway, jetty, and pontoon with hoist, and the purchase of two refurbished accessible dinghies.
• South Creake Tennis Club, awarded £10,715 to install two heavy duty retractable awnings.
• Thornham Village Hall and Playing Field Ltd, awarded £48,080 to build a new sports pavilion to replace the 50 year old wooden structure.
• Watlington Village Hall Management Committee, awarded £14,919, to install solar panels on the roof of the Village Hall.
• Westacre Arts Foundation Ltd, awarded £20,000 to install solar panels and link these into existing solar panels, increasing and improving the venue’s sustainable energy.

All of the awards have been made following a two stage application process which invited interested applicants to apply for grants of between £10,000-£50,000.

Councillor Alistair Beales, Leader of the Borough Council of King’s Lynn and West Norfolk said:

“We had a great response to our call for projects earlier this year, and it is fantastic to now see these grants being awarded to make a difference across west Norfolk.

“This funding is transformational for many of the projects, and will support the development of activities and facilities, and the creation of a range of diverse opportunities that will benefit local residents.

“The variety and breadth of the projects that are receiving grants will allow the funding to have a significant impact across our communities.”

Councillor Jo Rust, Cabinet Member for People and Communities was involved in the grant assessment process for the West Norfolk Community Capital Grants Scheme and commented:

“The applications we received were very impressive, and there is clearly a commitment across the borough to enhancing facilities within our communities.  

“It is good to see the variety of the community projects which will now be able to put the funding to good use to develop the resources that are on offer for local residents.

“Thank you to everyone who took the time to submit an application, we were really pleased to see such a high level of interest in this opportunity for west Norfolk.”

There is also still funding available to support businesses in West Norfolk through the West Norfolk Rural Capital Grants. This scheme offers the opportunity for new and existing micro, small and medium rural businesses to secure grants of between £10,000 - £100,000 in capital funding to develop new products and facilities that will be of wider benefit to the local economy. The funding can also support activities that help to develop and promote the visitor economy.

To date, grants have been offered to twelve businesses, and anyone who would like to apply should contact the New Anglia Growth Hub.

In addition, funding is also available to help businesses upskill their employees, improve employee engagement, resilience, and productivity, and to support staff retention through the West Norfolk Training Grants scheme. Grants from £250 up to a maximum of £3,000 per business are available, with the funding covering a maximum of 75% of the total cost of the training.

So far, grants have been offered to nine organisations. These grants are also awarded on a first come first served basis – contact the New Anglia Growth Hub to apply.

Councillor Simon Ring, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Business and Culture said:

“Through these two funding schemes, businesses in West Norfolk have the opportunity to access significant investment that could have a far-reaching and long-term impact for their business.

“As a result of these grants, businesses across the borough are being supported to enhance their offer, develop their people, and thrive.

“I would urge anyone who thinks the funding could help to deliver their business goals to get in touch with New Anglia Growth Hub.”

Projects which have received funding through the schemes and which are making a difference around skills, knowledge, and business in west Norfolk were celebrated at a recent event.

The UK Shared Prosperity Funding Employment and Skills networking event was held at The Place, King’s Lynn on 3 July and provided an opportunity to showcase projects which have benefitted from investment through the funding.

For more information on all the funding opportunities please visit our West Norfolk Shared Prosperity Funding page.