Community Pot aims to tackle pandemic hardship

Hartlepool Borough Council has launched the Hartlepool Community Pot to enable local Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS) organisations to apply for funding to address issues affecting communities across the town.

Councillors have allocated £200,000 to the initiative, and organisations can apply for grants ranging from £20,000 to £200,000.

Councillor Shane Moore, Leader of the Council, said: “We have recognised for some time now that the social and economic consequences of the pandemic are going to be deep and far-reaching.

“The Council has been working hard to develop a COVID-19 Recovery and Renewal Plan that sets out a co-ordinated approach for bringing stakeholders together for the benefit of local people, and the Hartlepool Community Pot is a key element of this.

“The initiative will enable us build upon our long-standing commitment to provide support to the most vulnerable residents of our town.”

Director of Adult and Community Based Services Jill Harrison said: “The Community Pot provides voluntary and community sector organisations with an opportunity to make a real difference to local people who have been affected by the pandemic.  Organisations can apply for grants of £20,000 or more, and bids of more than £50,000 will need to show evidence of collaboration between two or more organisations.  There is also the opportunity for a single award of £200,000 to be considered if there’s evidence of a sustainable partnership approach to town-wide priorities.  I would particularly encourage organisations to be ambitious and work collaboratively on projects that will have the greatest impact.” 

All applications will be rigorously assessed and they should:

• Provide evidence of need based on community engagement
• Deliver interventions that will address hardship arising from COVID19 that is impacting on communities in Hartlepool.
• Provide additionality rather than duplicating similar projects or replacing core funding for an on-going scheme.
• Have a clear impact and outcomes.
• Be delivered through a collaborative approach across the VCS.
• Have a clear exit strategy demonstrating the longer-term impact due to resources being one-off.

The closing date for the receipt of applications is 12 noon on Monday January 18th. Following assessment, a final decision will be taken by councillors on Monday February 15th. Application forms can be downloaded from www.hartlepool.gov.uk/community-pot and completed applications should be submitted to CommunityPot@hartlepool.gov.uk

For all other enquires - or should you wish to discuss your application concept with Council officers - please email CommunityPot@hartlepool.gov.uk