Community Fund projects 2025/26

Extension Sandylands Sports Centre

Sandylands Sports Centre £5,000.00 Craven

Funding will support the Changing Places fully accessible Toilet as part of wider project extension. Centre is aiming to increase use, and enhance inclusivity and will work with local partners to support this.

VIY project at Gallows Close

VIY £15,150.00 Scarborough

This project covers the delivery of a new VIY youth and community improvement project at Gallows Close Centre in Scarborough, involving and benefitting at least 15 vulnerable young people who are NEET or at risk of becoming NEET – including those involved in/at risk of becoming involved in crime. Through a 2 week project, VIY will work with the young people (identified in partnership) to prioritise and complete works to the centre they use and benefit from, including creating a 121 meeting space, bespoke storage solutions to maximise safer space, developing a sensory garden including sensory wall, seating, raised planters, wildlife learning zone and replacement shed and redecoration of their main hall. Project outputs/outcomes will include 15 young people receiving hands-on training and mentoring, at least 75% of the young people reporting achieving an Entry Level 3 City & Guilds skills accreditation, increased sense of work-readiness, improved softer/broader employability skills, raised job/career aspirations, increased feeling of happiness and wellbeing, at least 2 young people progressing to an employment/further/higher-level training opportunity post the project. Young people will be surveyed on project exit. VIY will also follow up with young people/referral partners beyond the end of the project up to 12 months, and support those who opt in for our onwards progression support to support them into positive outcomes.

Safety Training Boat

YORK SEA CADETS £6,730.00 York

York Sea Cadets has been donated a boat by the canal and river trust to be used for powerboat training. This boat needs some work and the funding will get this project going and provide training to York Sea Cadets, York Rescue Boat, the Canal and River Trust and other partners. The project is a joint one between York Sea Cadets who will manage the boat and conduct the training, The Canal and River trust who provided the boat and York Rescue boat who will provide an instructor and in due course mooring for the boat. Currently, York Sea Cadets, York Rescue Boat and the Canal and River trust operate boats on the river Ouse, to train young people, support the emergency services and manage and maintain the river, all respectively. The current situation is that these organisations all have to travel a considerable distance and expend a considerable amount on this training to gain the relevant certification in boat operation. Refurbishing this training boat will allow that training to take place in York and provide a reserve rescue boat, supporting safer communities. NYFRS Prevention team will support with engagement work with young people and volunteers about water safety.

All About Respect

University of York £14,483.92 York

Recent discussions with safeguarding leads, the local police, and partners from the council have highlighted that the use of inappropriate and discriminatory language is an increasing problem across schools in the City. This behaviour happens both in school and online through social media and group chats. The language use is of an increasingly hostile, discriminatory and harmful nature and is a behaviour that impacts both on individual students and the whole school environment. Therefore, the aim of this project is to pilot a co-produced whole-school intervention to highlight the nature and impact of inappropriate language use, and to introduce simple bystander behaviours that children can use to challenge this behaviour and check in on their peers. This project builds upon work with the All About Respect project, adapting materials and activities for a younger age, together with a new project called ‘Words Hurt’ as part of the All About Respect Project. Project will co-create a toolkit of in-school activities designed to raise awareness of the nature and impact of inappropriate language use on primary school childrens’ mental health. This toolkit will then be piloted in settings agreed in partnership. Activities will include an assembly and an interactive stall. The funding will enable further development of All About Respect, by employing a project officer to deliver the initiative in schools, and undertake focus groups to explore whether awareness-raising activities are effective in achieving the aims.