£50,000 Examiner cash giveaway to start the New Year

Jan 26 2010 By Andrew Hirst

THE start of the New Year marks the chance for community groups to grab a cash bonanza from a staggering £50,000 pot.

The new giveaway has just been launched in the Examiner and there will be more details and an application form in next week’s Weekly News.

Last year the Examiner had £30,000 to give away and groups were quick to respond with 42 groups sharing the bumper windfall at a ceremony last April.

Now we have managed to secure £20,000 more, bringing the total up to a whopping £50,000.

Applying for it is easy and Examiner editor Roy Wright said: “It’s not often groups can apply for money so easily so I would urge every community-based group or organisation that needs some funding to act now.

“The economic climate remains exceptionally harsh at the moment, which makes this giveaway extra special.”

The massive cash injection has been provided by the Community Foundation For Calderdale – but the money will go to groups in Kirklees.

The cash must be distributed by the end of March and the deadline for entries is February 27.

It is only open to groups with an annual income of £30,000 or less.

They must have been running for 12 months or more and be mostly run by volunteers.

This is because the cash comes from a pot of Government money called Grassroots Grants, which is managed by the Community Development Foundation and funded by the Office of the Third Sector.

The money is part of a nationwide drive by the Government to support thousands of groups and projects across the country that work hard to improve their local communities.

Groups can apply for up to £900 and then a panel of judges will sift through the entries and allocate the money to the groups which score in accordance with the Grassroots Grants criteria.

Any small group or community organisation can apply for a share.

It could include clubs dedicated to helping the elderly, groups that clean-up the environment, good causes involved in the arts or schemes that improve children’s health and well-being.