Community / Christmas funding boost for range of organisations
A NUMBER of community organisations and projects in Shetland have secured funding in recent weeks from a variety of sources.
Isles based GlobalYell Ltd has received £14,899 in Lottery funding for the development of a new creative wellbeing festival.
Created in response to the hardship of the coronavirus pandemic, the festival aims to celebrate health and wellbeing through the arts.
It will allow practitioners and tutors to safely share their expertise and highlight the role creativity can play in helping us through tough times.
GlobalYell Ltd creative director Andy Ross said: “Our arts and wellbeing festival came about as one answer to the disruption of Covid.
“We are excited to offer ways to bring together our diverse communities, to explore and celebrate arts and crafts and help us all to connect in new and different ways in spite of the difficulties everyone has and is facing.
“We look forward to seeing creativity in action, and to helping our island community.”
Sandwick Social and Economic Development, meanwhile, has been awarded £5,000 towards the provision of solar-powered lighting, hanging baskets and planters in Hoswick.
Living Lerwick has also secured £3,550 to put towards creating video, print and radio content to promote safe shopping and activities to support local businesses.
Those two grants are coming from the Scotland Loves Local Fund, which has made in excess of 200 grants nationally to help communities recover from the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
A number of organisations in Shetland are also due to benefit from Scottish Sea Farms’ Heart of the Community Trust.
Newcraigielea Respite, Shetland Foodbank, Brae Primary School, Mind Your Head, Shetland Link Up and Shetland Befriending Scheme will all receive funding, with the latter three chosen by Scottish Sea Farms’ Shetland area manager Robbie Coutts.
“I was trying to think of charities that were going to be dealing with the fall-out from Covid, especially those affected from not being able to see their friends,” Coutts said.
“In the past, the farm managers’ funding would typically go to Shetland sporting organisations such as junior football but their activities have been curtailed this year, with tournaments and travelling cancelled.
“Sport is one of the main opportunities for social interaction amongst all ages, children especially. Without it, many may be dealing with feelings of loneliness and isolation, which is why the work of the organisations such as Mind Your Head Shetland, Shetland Link Up and Shetland Befriending Scheme is so important.”
Forty three groups and good causes in total across the company’s farming regions of Shetland, Orkney and mainland Scotland are set to benefit from grants ranging from a few hundred pounds to £500 from the company’s trust fund.
It was also announced last week that seven local projects had secured almost £185,000 between them from the first round of grants from a new fund which will distribute money received from Crown Estate assets.
Become a member of Shetland News
Shetland News is asking its many readers to consider paying for membership to get additional features and services: -
- Remove non-local ads;
- Bookmark posts to read later;
- Exclusive curated weekly newsletter;
- Hide membership messages;
- Comments open for discussion.
If you appreciate what we do and feel strongly about impartial local journalism, then please become a member of Shetland News by either making a single payment, or setting up a monthly, quarterly or yearly subscription.
Already a member? Sign in to hide this message.
