Canal funding scheme to help tackle inequalities in sport and activity in Manchester, Oldham and Rochdale

Community groups in Rochdale are being encouraged by the Canal & River Trust to apply for grants of up to £5,000 to tackle inequalities in sport and physical activity.

Sport England has given the Canal & River Trust a £120,000 grant to be distributed to local community projects in the form of the Together Fund.

The Together Fund is a targeted fund to deal with recovery, alleviating long-term impacts, facilitating emergence from Covid-19, supporting community organisations to reach and engage their audience in movement/physical activity and tackling the widening of the inequalities in sport and physical activity for the communities the Canal & River Trust works with alongside local waterways.

Data from the Sport England commissioned Physical Activity attitudes and behaviours survey following Covid-19 is highlighting widening gaps in the activity levels across their existing priority audiences.

Wider sector intelligence clearly shows that some of these priority audiences are suffering more from the impact of the disease than is the case with the wider population. These groups are people from lower socio-economic groups, culturally diverse communities, people with disabilities and people with long-term health conditions.

Sara Ponting, Together Fund engagement coordinator at Canal & River Trust, said: “This is a great chance to support local communities with funding for physical activity initiatives along the waterway. We are supporting local groups who do invaluable work, from tackling loneliness, to supporting young people to help improve their wellbeing.

“The Rochdale Canal, like other former industrial canals, has been reinvented in the 21st century as a vital on-the-doorstep destination to improve health and wellbeing. New research proves that the canal’s mix of blue and green space with wildlife is particularly powerful for helping to make you feel healthier and happier.

“Hopefully this fund will help groups provide new opportunities for people to explore their local canal and get fitter joining in fun activities by water in the great outdoors.”

Who is eligible to apply?

• Community organisations with a constitution/set of rules and a bank account
• Social Enterprises
• Community Interest Companies
• Charities
• Sole traders in special circumstances

Examples of what the funding can be used for:

• Funding for community groups to find new ways of keeping active
• Instructor costs or staff accredited training
• Increasing resilience, capacity and capability of delivery bodies
• Professional fees: interpreter, sports instructor
• Equipment such as bikes/canoes/paddleboards

Your project should include delivery on your local Canal & River Trust waterways, be located in Manchester, Oldham or Rochdale and aim to reach the aforementioned priority audiences.

The minimum grant request is £500, and the maximum is £5,000. Your project should be deliverable within a six-month timescale (from the date you receive funding) and completed no later than 31 March 2023.

Applications are open and groups are encouraged to apply as soon as possible as this is a rolling approval process. The last round of applications will be considered December/January.

Applications can be made via https://manchestercommunitycentral.org/news/together-fund