Deadline: 24-Nov-22
The Voluntary Sector Gateway West Lothian (VSGWL) is delighted to launch phase 1 of year 2 of the £469k West Lothian Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund aimed at supporting and encouraging initiatives that promote and benefit the mental health and wellbeing of people at a small scale, grassroots, community level.
The £469k Fund is being delivered through a locally focused and co-ordinated approach via local partnership
Groups (building upon existing partnerships and with Third Sector Interfaces (TSIs) as lead partner, working
Together to ensure that support to community-based organisations is directed appropriately and in a Coherent way.
Aims
- In line with the Scottish Government`s long term outcomes for mental health in communities, this Fund intends to provide investment for:
- Fostering a strategic and preventative approach to improving community mental health
- Supporting the resilience of communities and investing in their capacity to develop their own solutions, including through strong local partnerships
- Tackling the social determinants of mental health by targeting resources and collaborating with other initiatives to tackle poverty and inequality
Focus Area
- The overarching aim of the Fund is to support community-based initiatives that promote and develop good mental health and wellbeing and/or mitigate and protect against the impact of distress and mental ill health within the adult population, with a particular focus on:
- Tackling priority issues within the Transition and Recovery Plan such as suicide prevention, social isolation and loneliness, prevention, and early intervention
- Addressing the mental health inequalities exacerbated by the pandemic and the needs of a range of ‘at risk’ groups locally
- Supporting small ‘grass roots’ community groups and organisations to deliver such activities
- Providing opportunities for people to connect with each other, build trusted relationships and revitalise communities
- Supporting recovery and creativity locally by building on what is already there, what was achieved through the pandemic, and by investing in creative solutions
- While the effects of the pandemic on mental health will be long lasting, and still emerging, it is important to recognise that there are also other societal challenges affecting communities and their mental health and wellbeing such as the cost-of-living crisis. This issue deepens the importance of initiatives that support one of the Fund’s ‘at risk’ groups – those facing socio-economic disadvantage.
Funding Information
- They have developed two grant applications.
- Small Grant Application £2K – £10K For community-based activities that support good mental health and wellbeing of adults who have been impacted by Covid-19 pandemic and wish to maintain or improve their health and wellbeing.
- Large Grant Application £10K – £50K To fund activities that increase the capacity of community-based organisations to provide a service to local people. Communities may be geographical areas within and across West Lothian or communities of interest.
Fund Outcome
- Fund outcomes The intended outcome of the Fund is to develop a culture of mental wellbeing and prevention within local communities and across Scotland with improved awareness of how they can all stay well and help themselves and others. The Fund seeks to contribute to the four key areas of focus from the Mental Health Transition and Recovery Plan:
- Promoting and supporting the conditions for good mental health and wellbeing at population level
- Providing accessible signposting to help, advice and support
- Providing a rapid and easily accessible response to those in distress
- Ensuring safe, effective treatment and care of people living with mental illness The Fund also seeks to contribute to the following national outcomes from the National Performance Framework:
- They are healthy and active
- They will live in communitiesthat are inclusive, empowered, resilient and safe
- They tackle poverty by sharing opportunities, wealth, and power more equally
Type of projects they can support
- The focus of the Fund is on the adult population and on projects which help whole communities and/or community groups, in turn making a difference to the lives of individuals. The adult population is considered to be those 16 and over, in that a wide range of community supports (such as an art club focusing on mental wellbeing) will be open to this age group. They recognise that there is some overlap with children and young people community support funding although that funding is focused on targeted CYP projects.
- Only projects which meet the fund aims can be supported. Therefore, projects can be funded if they are a community-based initiative that promotes and develops good mental health and wellbeing and/or mitigates and protects against the impact of distress and mental ill health within the adult population. In addition, local partnerships should ensure that funding is allocated to initiatives which have a focus on:
- Tackling priority issues within the Transition and Recovery Plan such as suicide prevention, social isolation and loneliness, prevention and early intervention
- Addressing the mental health inequalities exacerbated by the pandemic and the needs of one or more of the ‘at risk’ groups locally.
- Projects must also have a specific community focus rather than providing regional or national coverage.
Eligibility Criteria
- The ambition of this Fund is to support initiatives which promote mental health and wellbeing at a small scale, grass roots, community level. The Fund will be accessible to all groups, no matter how small or inexperienced they are. National organisations undertaking initiatives in the local area are not excluded but are not the main focus of the Fund. Funded organisations do not need to have to have mental health and wellbeing as their sole focus, but, as this is the purpose of this Fund, their application does have to clearly outline how it benefits the mental health and wellbeing of people in their community.
- Applications will be accepted from a range of voluntary, ‘not for profit’ organisations, associations, groups and clubs or consortiums/partnerships which have a strong community focus for their activities and have their own bank account. The range of organisations eligible to apply are:
- Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisations(SCIO)
- Companies Limited by Guarantee
- Trusts
- Not-for-profit company or asset locked company or Community Interest Companies (CIC)
- Cooperative and Community Benefit Societies
- Community councils
- Parent councils
For more information, visit https://www.voluntarysectorgateway.org/launch-of-469k-west-lothian-communities-mental-health-and-wellbeing-fund-year-2/
