NEW £11.5 MILLION FUND EMPOWERING LOCAL COMMUNITIES

NEW £11.5 MILLION FUND EMPOWERING LOCAL COMMUNITIES

Almond Valley community groups are set to benefit from new Scottish Government funding to tackle poverty, inequality and rural disadvantage.

Around 250 community groups, social enterprises and charities across Scotland will receive a share of £11.5 million in 2019-20 through the Scottish Government’s Investing in Communities Fund.

Projects in Almond Valley, such as The Trampoline Project, The Larder, West Calder & Harburn Community Development Trust, Bridge Community Project and Almond Housing Association will be supported with the new funding.

Further funding each year, over the next two years, will allow recipient groups to create longer-term plans and this, in turn, will help Almond Valley’s most disadvantaged residents.

Local MSP Angela Constance said:

“It is incumbent upon all of us to challenge inequality wherever it rears its head.

“This new fund will promote community-led solutions to try and get the best possible outcomes for Almond Valley’s most vulnerable people.

“The flexible, multi-year structure of the funding is geared towards sustainability. It will give these initiatives confidence that they will have resources they need to succeed.

“It is the tireless dedication and compassion of all the local volunteers that allows these projects to exist. I am confident that this funding will allow these projects to flourish.

ENDS

Background

The new Investing in Communities Fund forms part of the Scottish Government’s wider Empowering Communities Programme.

The fund offers availability of multiyear awards, which means funding is available over three financial years from 2019-20 to 2021-22 with projects able to apply for funding for more than one year. This allows for longer term planning to develop and support communities to design and deliver local community-led solutions to tackle poverty and inequalities.

The full list of successful projects will be made available on the Scottish Government’s Empowering Communities Fund webpage.

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