Groups to receive £53,000 boost to support Telford community during second wave

Food banks, breakfast clubs and other support groups will get the money from Telford & Wrekin Council to help them continue to provide vital services.

This latest tranche of cash is on top of £248,000 the council had already given since the start of the pandemic in March.

So far the authority has given almost £85,000 to community groups across the borough who provide breakfast clubs and food to children who qualify for free school meals, and £38,000 to support the borough’s five main food bank providers.

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A further £10,000 will be given in the next few days to support the Telford & Wrekin Interfaith Council as they extend their service, taking the total to over £48,000 since March given to food banks in the borough

Separately the council has given £83,000 to support seven key community venues to help them to continue to operate during the pandemic and serve as vital places for people to access local support services such as providing and delivering meals, support collecting shopping and medication, and a distribution point for food parcel collection.

£35,000 has been allocated to two key charities working to tackle rough sleep in the borough – Maninplace and Stay, and the council has also granted two community groups £3,500 for their help in making keep-in-touch calls to vulnerable residents.

Crucial

On top of this the council is now starting to receive extra funding from Government, for example £1 million to tackle rough sleeping, while it is expecting to receive extra funding to extend its free school meal support during school holidays into 2021.

Councillor Paul Watling, cabinet lead for communities, said: “Since the start of the pandemic, we have been very clear that the council must work very closely with and financially support its partners to help protect and care for those most in need in the borough.

“Community organisations have had an absolutely crucial role in this and have helped us to reach many more of those who need our support.

“Whether this is providing children who qualify for free school meals with breakfasts and lunches during the holidays, running food banks for those who need help to feed their families, supporting charities who help tackle rough sleeping to venues at the heart of the community which offer a very wide range of support.

“It’s only right that we have given these organisations funding since the start of the pandemic and we’re now upping that as this new lockdown will mean more demand for their work.

“The Government have now realised the part such groups play and we hope that, through our work with these partners, we can ensure this additional funding continues to reach those who need it most.”