Supporting small groups and community-based charities

Above: Wansdyke Play Association
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The Quartet Community Foundation aims to bring people together and improve lives by supporting small groups and community-based charities in the West of England (Bath and North East Somerset, Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire), which are working to improve local communities. The Mohn Westlake Foundation’s donation will support three programmes.

At a glance…

  • Over the past 32 years the Quartet Community Foundation has distributed grants of over £49 million.
  • Each year the Foundation gives out around 1,000 grants to voluntary and community groups across the West of England.
  • Last year the Foundation awarded grants worth £3.5 million, their highest ever annual grant-making total.

The Sudden Needs Fund is based in the West of England outside of Bristol, and applications are currently being sought to respond to new and emerging needs in a timely and flexible way. Development is underway on the No Child Goes Hungry programme in Bristol, and a researcher is undertaking primary research to identify which projects to fund to tackle child hunger strategically. Work is also being carried out to build a partnership between local organisations who are working with parents to develop a three-year place-based funding programme in Hartcliffe. The first grants from these three projects will be made in March 2019.


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Bath Area Play Project

Some of the funded projects include:


Sudden Needs Fund Set Up In Response To New And Emerging Needs Affecting Children And Young People

The Sudden Needs Fund is based in the West of England outside of Bristol.

  • A grant of £2,500 was awarded to Our Way, Our Say in South Ward in Weston-super-Mare, to fund the setting up of a mother and toddler group to enable women to meet in a safe environment where their children can play. The ward is in the top 10 percent most deprived areas in the country, and the area shows very high deprivation scores for crime, education, employment and income.
  • Yatton Youth Club was awarded a grant of £3,000 to support a new weekly detached project, where two youth workers are building relationships with young people who are not engaged in any other youth work provision in order to reduce anti-social behaviour in the area. The need emerged following reports from the local parish council and PCSOs in response to young people engaging in anti-social behaviour.
  • A grant of £5,000 was awarded to South Weston Activity Network (SWAN) for a project to expand the work of the newly formed Youth Forum. The project, based in South Ward in Weston-super-Mare, will provide a safe space for local young people outside of school hours, reducing the risk of this vulnerable group getting caught up in anti-social behaviour. Through the Forum these young people have started to address the impact of their anti-social behaviour and, by participating in activities provided by SWAN, are taking steps to combat these issues, particularly during the school holidays.
  • XTND – Improving Futures has been awarded a grant of £7,900 for the ‘Mini Police’ scheme in and around the Bournville estate in Weston-super-Mare. The project is a volunteering opportunity for 9-11-year olds and follows a three-step approach of Education, Community and Reward. The objective is to introduce children to a positive experience of policing and to get them involved in the local community. Children learn what it means to be a police officer and the importance of the community working with police to help protect them from crime. By engaging with children and young people from an early age, the Mini Police scheme aims to help them understand how becoming involved in criminality can affect their lives. Children also learn that being a police officer is a positive role, which in turn may reduce anti-social behaviour in the future.

Since July 2019 further grants have been made to:

  • Clevedon YMCA: A £5,000 grant was made to this North Somerset project working with young people (aged 11-18) to build resilience and good mental health in response to research findings that highlight mental health as the major issue facing these young people.
  • Bath Youth Partnership: Formed by three local organisations in response to the lack of youth provision in Bath city centre, Bath Youth Partnership has been awarded £10,000. A survey conducted by the Partnership highlighted the importance of trusted adults in helping young people feel safe from violence and exploitation. While the partnership recognised that Bath doesn’t currently have a significant gang culture or high knife crime, they are aware that some young people carry weapons and want to implement preventative measures to ensure it doesn’t become a problem. The project will enable two outreach sessional youth workers to be employed. They will work in the centre of Bath, building relationships with the young people there, encouraging pro-social behaviour, and supporting other youth work activity.
  • Our Way, Our Say: Awarded £4,000 and based in Weston-Super-Mare, Our Way, Our Say are working with hard-to-reach teenagers on the Bournville estate. The project engages these young people using sessions of non-contact boxing to help build skills such as anger management, self-control, self-confidence and life skills.

  • Juice Community Project: This South Gloucestershire project received £9,690 to pilot a new approach by providing one-to-one mentoring and group sessions with young people in Cadbury Heath who have been identified as having complex needs and behavioural issues.
  • Wellspring Counselling: Providing counselling and CBT sessions for young people in Nailsea, Backwell, Portishead and Clevedon/Yatton, Wellspring Counselling will benefit from a grant of £5,000.
  • Sporting Family Change: Following the closure of a local organisation this summer, the £6,500 grant awarded to this Radstock and Midsomer Norton-based project will enable applicants to step in and provide sport-based mentoring support to young people in the local area. These young people have an added challenge caused by being more geographically isolated and less able to access the services that may be on offer in, for example, central Bath.

  • Off the Record - BANES: One-to-one counselling and listening services for young people, Off the Record has identified a need for a less formal service where young people can drop in to access support. The £ 9,620 grant will enable them to provide a safe wellbeing hub that young people of Bath could drop into and receive support or signposting to other services.

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Our Way Our Say Weston super Mare

“This is a great group! It’s got me out the house and helped me make new friends with a lovely space for my little Lolly to play and learn some social skills. I’m working on my anxiety and this group is helping me step out the comfort of my house into the real world.’’Young mum, Stacy

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First Steps, Bath

“One mother discussed with a community group her situation, where the children were receiving packed lunches on a Friday. The project leader knew she was struggling and offered her some leftover lunches to take home. She burst into tears and said how much it was going to help, as she only had £2.50 to cover the family for the weekend.”Feeding Bristol

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Golden Hill Community Garden, Bristol

For more information about the Quartet Community Foundation and their projects, please visit: quartetcf.org.uk
Or to link to the application process, visit https://quartetcf.org.uk/grant-programmes/emerging-and-new-needs-affecting-children-young-people-grant/


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