Five Leicestershire projects working with some of society’s most vulnerable women and girls have received a much-needed funding boost of £10,000 each from Leicestershire and Rutland Community Foundation.
Small charities and community groups nationally have received grants of between £7,000 – £10,000 from the Tampon Tax Community Fund to work with women of all ages, focusing on preventative services for those at risk of crisis.
As one of the UK’s largest grant-giving organisations, UK Community Foundations was asked by Government to distribute the largest share – £3.4 million – of the funding raised through the levy on sanitary products in 2017/18 to small, local projects, working with its network of Community Foundations across the country.
UKCF Director of Programmes and Development Vicki Papworth said: “Community Foundations work with grassroots groups who are running vital services on a shoestring and supporting some of the most marginalised people in our society. This funding will enable them to run some amazing projects that make difference on the ground to the women and girls who need it most.”
Projects receiving funding in this first round of grants aim to help women and girls improve their health and wellbeing, build their confidence, skills and help them create and develop social networks.
The five Leicestershire projects each receiving £10,000 of funding are:
Shama Women’s Centre: to help women to gain confidence, qualifications, social networks and employment.
Kaine Management: to support teen parents to develop confidence & motivation, overcome barriers & and make plans for theirs/their children’s lives.
New Dawn New Day: to provide therapeutic support groups for women who have been affected by domestic and sexual violence.
Soft Touch Arts: to support young people in creation of music in small groups and individually and develop confidence to perform in front of an audience.
The Way of the Horse therapeutic centre: to provide social, emotional and well-being support for young girls and their mums.
Khudeja Amer-Sharif, coordinator at Shama Women’s Centre, said: “The grant we have received will help to change the lives of many women in Leicester, especially those facing multiple barriers including language, employability skills and who suffer health inequalities.”
Helen Pearson, a director at Soft Touch Arts, said: “We are delighted to have been awarded a grant from the Tampon Tax Community Fund. It means we can continue to support young women who have loads of musical talent and ambition, but are held back by challenges such as mental health problems and social isolation, to grow in confidence and flourish.”
Katy Green, chief executive of Leicestershire and Rutland Community Foundation, said: “We work with donors, companies and agencies to support local charitable groups running vital services for some of the most marginalised people in our society. We’re delighted that the Tampon Tax Community Fund enables us to support these exceptional projects working the women and girls.”
Community Foundations were oversubscribed in all areas for the Tampon Tax Community Fund. Only a quarter of the 1,500 applications for vital women and girls projects could be supported from this stream of funding.
