Community groups in Swansea awarded funding from National Lottery

National Lottery funding awarded to eleven community groups in the Swansea area for essential community and family support.

Eleven community groups in and around Swansea are celebrating receiving a share of £107,754 total National Lottery grants. Thanks to National Lottery players these eleven groups are supporting individuals and families in the Swansea community.

Family and Therapy CIC’s £10,000 grant will support young people and families to improve their mental health. The project will provide free counselling sessions in an area where there is a lack of mental health support for young people. Aileen Brindley the Co Owner, Project Lead and Counsellor, said:

“Family and Therapy CIC are thrilled to have received funding from The National Lottery Community Fund. We are now able to encourage more talking and provide creative counselling to young people and their families in the Llwchwr community struggling with their mental health”

Clydach Community Garden’s grant of £10,000 will mean they can expand on their community growing project. They will deliver weekly gardening workshops, offering more opportunities for local schools and people with additional needs to have a go at gardening. Expanding the garden will enable them to support the local food bank by providing more produce to share. Linda Martin, Clydach Community Garden Volunteer told us what the project means to her:

“Our community garden means everything to me, our gardening sessions are the highlight of my week. Our volunteers see the garden as an important resource to socialise and meet others. The weekly sessions bring people together to look after the garden, meet others and learn new skills. I’m positively overwhelmed with how we have made it what it is today, with lots of hard work and determination. I’m looking forward to seeing how it develops with our wonderful grant from The National Lottery Community Fund!”

Nigerians in Wales Association CIC have successfully applied for their first grant from The National Lottery Community Fund and were awarded £9,910. They will use the funding to organise events to promote cultural and social interactions and strengthen racial understanding between Nigerians and the local community.

Patience Bentu, Director of Nigerians in Wales Association CIC, explained:

“We are more than delighted to receive our first funding as a community group from the National Lottery Community Fund. This funding will provide us with a foundation to develop future projects for our community through our Meet and Greet project. We remain committed to supporting our community in Wales through projects and events that will enhance skills, provide knowledge and information, promote our culture, arts and heritage; and overall, improve the well-being of members of our community.”

Swansea Hackspace’s grant of £9,500 will mean they can provide members of the community with a space and a large pool of shared tools and equipment. The project will bring the community together and teach them new skills through various workshops including electronics, textiles, science and many more.

Peter Barnes, Swansea Hackspace Refurbishment Coordinator, said:

“This funding from The National Lottery Community Fund will give us the boost we need to get Swansea Hackspace open to the public, allowing us to run community workshops and provide a safe space for hobbyists and makers in the heart of Swansea’s city centre”

Seven other local projects are welcoming the news that their grant bids were successful:

Jac Lewis Foundation £9,800’s grant will secure the continuation of the Wales Bereavement Through Suicide Project that enables people to access immediate support by professionally qualified psychotherapists. A new face-to-face peer group will be held to further help those that have been bereaved through suicide by sharing their experiences.

Surf Therapy CIC successfully applied for £9,483 to run surf-therapy sessions to teach men the basics of surfing whilst giving them the opportunity to overcome personal boundaries and support in addressing their mental health challenges.

Communities For Horses will work in marginalised and disadvantaged urban communities to bring people together through their passion for horses. The project will build relationships, develop support networks, and improve wellbeing and welfare for both people and horses with their grant of £9,105.

LGBT Cymru Helpline will use their £10,000 grant to deliver group therapy classes on resilience, positive psychology, and life after COVID-19. The classes will improve the communities’ mental health and well-being and encourage participants to work towards a positive life balance.

Interplay (Integrated Play & Leisure)’s £10,000 grant will re-establish their fortnightly face to face sessions for young people
aged 18 to 25 with disabilities and mental health support needs. The sessions will enable them to build relationships while supporting them to increase their social skills, learn from new experiences and gain independence.

Sketty Foodbank provide a food bank for families experiencing financial difficulties especially due to the cost of living crisis. They will use their £9,956 grant to buy storage and supplies to expand their foodbank.

Sunshine Lotus Yoga were awarded £10,000 to offer free yoga courses for people experiencing poor mental and physical health.

Rob Roffe, Head of Mid and West Wales at The National Lottery Community Fund in Wales, celebrated all the organisation’s saying:

“We are proud to be the largest funder of community activity in the UK. The Fund is dedicated to supporting projects like these in and around Swansea, that bring people together to support their communities, create stronger social connections and help develop new skills. National Lottery players raise over £30 million each week for good causes like these throughout the UK”

These are just eleven of 114 projects awarded across Wales in the past month totalling £5,090,187 of funding raised by National Lottery players. To read the full list please see the attached document.