Cash awarded to community projects tackling health inequalities
Six projects which aim to improve wellbeing and target local health or social inequalities have received funding to help bring their ideas into reality.
Over £166,000 has been awarded to the projects as part of the Health Inequalities and Wellbeing fund, launched by Falkirk Health and Social Care Partnership last year.
The latest funding allocation adds to a series of projects which were successful in earlier application rounds, bringing the total funding provided to community-led initiatives to £772,402.
Organisations, community groups, and statutory bodies were invited to apply for up to £25,000 per year for the next two years to fund ideas which take a creative approach to addressing inequalities and improving wellbeing.
The six new projects funded are from:
- The Breastfeeding Network
- Committed to Ending Abuse (CEA)
- Energy Action Scotland
- Fedcap Employment Scotland
- Step Forth Walking Programme (Nordic Walking), Falkirk Council
- Weight Management Group, Falkirk Council
Susan Paterson, Operations Director at Fedcap Scotland, explains how the funding will benefit local communities: “We help people to find the jobs and careers they love – which means we also understand the barriers some people can face when trying to achieve their goals, and the knock-on impact this can have on their health and everyday life.
“Our pilot project will provide targeted support for people with anxiety, helping to build the confidence and positive self-esteem needed to land the rewarding role they deserve or achieving other positive next steps in life.”
Fedcap will support people in Falkirk through the Healthy Minds, Inspiring People programme, which helps people with poor mental health, learning difficulties and disabilities.
Another successful project, The Breastfeeding Network, will use the funding to improve the support on offer to young parents and families in Falkirk.
Pictured: Forth Valley volunteers from The Breastfeeding Network
Sarah Edwards, Programme Manager at The Breastfeeding Network, adds: “We know that community-based support for new parents is highly valued by local families in Forth Valley and that breastfeeding can be challenging – with many parents stopping breastfeeding before they planned to.
“Our work will continue to offer information and peer-to-peer support to help families make the infant feeding choices that are right for them, helping to make Forth Valley a more breastfeeding friendly place.”
Using the new funding, The Breastfeeding Network hopes to open community-based groups, giving new parents a place to access support and meet other local parents. The network will also offer accredited peer support training to a group of local young mums so they can use their experiences to support other parents in Forth Valley.
A full list of full list of successful applicants is available, including a short description of each project.