North Yorkshire Council: ‘anchors’ to be given funding

The new North Yorkshire Council is to come to power next month and, in doing so, a total of £1.5 million in funding will become available, which groups can apply for.

A spokesperson for North Yorkshire County Council (NYCC) said this funding will spread out over the next three years and will allow established organisations in the county to develop their roles and act as “community anchors”.

These anchors will help increase the capacity of community and voluntary groups to act as key points of contact for the new unitary authority, providing hubs for the public to access advice and support, and increase resilience in communities.   

The project continues work undertaken by all eight councils in North Yorkshire to develop close working relationships with a network of community and voluntary groups, which provided support to residents during the pandemic.

To qualify for the funding, organisations must be established in communities with an existing base where they are delivering services - and have a proven track record that they are financially sustainable.

Groups that are already established in North Yorkshire can apply for £15,000-a-year in funding to become a community anchor ahead of a deadline on March 20.

NYCC’s executive member for stronger communities, Cllr Greg White, said: “Volunteers and community groups have always played a hugely important role in North Yorkshire, but their work came even more to the fore during the Covid-19 crisis.

Cllr Greg White (Image: NYCC)

“These organisations became a trusted voice for communities and helped us to publicise key public health messages and provided support at a grassroots level by co-ordinating the delivery of food and other essential items while checking on the most vulnerable members of society."

Read next:

• Council tax to be slashed for North Yorkshire residents most in need
• Volunteers to ensure high standards are maintained at North Yorkshire Council
• New walking group launched to help Pickering community
• Club to host world record attempt to raise funds for facilities upgrade

Cllr White added that organisations the council works with will be an "important element" in ensuring the authority can work to support those locally as much as possible, acting as the "ears and eyes" of the new council so that funding is given to those most in need.

The NYCC spokesperson explained that the investment would be available to organisations to finance a range of activities, such as building partnerships with organisations including the council and health services.

Giving examples, the spokesperson said the money could help develop community transport services, the running of social enterprise, improve education and skills – and help communities  respond to emergencies, and improve people’s financial resilience.

The new North Yorkshire Council will come to power on April 1, and will merge NYCC along with the existing seven district and borough authorities.

Information on how to apply for the community anchors project is available online at www.northyorks.gov.uk/stronger-communities on the county council’s website.