Resources and grant funding for churches
 In their latest newsletter, Community Mission share how to keep the faith alive in a church toddler group, setting up a job club during the recession and information on grant funding.
Funding
The Co-operative Bank’sCommunity Fund awards between £100-£2,000 to community groups and charities whose aim is to alleviate poverty in the UK and carry out positive work in the community. Funds can be used for running costs, equipment and events. Read the FAQs, funding criteria or submit an online application. Decisions will be made in four months and applications be submitted at any time. For more information, email Community Fund or phone 0161 827 5879.
 The J Paul Getty Jnr Charitable Trust funds projects that relieve poverty, support disadvantaged people and effect long-term change in the UK. Their current focus is social welfare (aimed at offenders, refugees, young people, the homeless, and those using drugs and alcohol) and arts and heritage (focusing on visual and performance arts and historic buildings). Small grants of up to £5,000 are available for small charities and main grants of between £10,000-£250,000 are available to larger charities over one to three years. There are no closing dates and projects will be notified in six weeks if they have made it to stage two. Read the FAQs, application guidance or apply online. For more information, phone 020 7486 1859.
The John Laing Charitable Trust offers charitable donations of between £250- £25,000, with most donations being £10,000 or less, to UK Charities that provide support to disadvantaged young people and the homeless (particularly day centres) as well as community regeneration projects. There is no deadline for applications and there is no application form. To apply, send a letter including the latest accounts for the project to the JLCT secretary. For more information, read the ‘how to apply’ information or phone 020 8959 9013.
Resources
Many churches run toddler groups and desire that these groups are connected to their church ministry. Sometimes the evangelistic opportunity of these groups can be lost due to fear of putting people off or lack of confidence in sharing the transformation that Jesus can make. Bridging the gap between toddler groups and church is an inspiring story of two churches that managed to make their toddler groups mission-focused and the difference that this has made to people.
It has been said that community projects with volunteers can have greater impact than those that function solely through employed staff because volunteers are motivated and sometimes commit long-term to the work. Managing volunteers, and getting the most from their skills and energy, can be hard work. In Time to Talk Team, Karen McIntyre shares top tips for working with volunteers: from recruitment to dealing with conflict. For more help with volunteers, Livability’s Community Mission has helpful resources for working with volunteers on their website.
Many churches and community projects are receiving more requests for help in finding employment due to the effects of the recession. For other projects, providing space for people to talk about the stress of a limited or tight budget is becoming an important part of their work. Church Urban Fund’sResponding to the Recession: Job Clubs in Churches shares simple steps to set up a drop-in where people can look for employment and get support through the process.
Community Mission is a partnership between Tearfund and Livability. Click here to sign up to future editions of their e-newsletter. | 