Small Sparks Community Grants

Do you live in the Coxlodge, Fawdon or Kenton area of Newcastle and have an idea for a community project? Applications are now open for Small Sparks Grants!

Apply for a Small Sparks grant today and have your idea spark into life!

Grants are available for up to £250 per application and your idea must be of benefit to the community.

What is the Small Sparks Challenge?

Can you think of a positive step you can take with others in your area, that is fun, something you are interested in and builds on your skills, passions and knowledge? Something that will bring people together and create an opportunity to make new friendships and connections and improves where you live?

For example, organising a community baking event, a music event, a one off session sharing knowledge of a subject with other. Sewing a banner for the local football team, marking walking trails, or a clean up day for your local area. Whatever you enjoy doing is a great place to start.

Why are they offering this grant?

They want to encourage people to do things that they enjoy, and to share or learn new skills. They want projects that make the area a better place to live, work and spend time, and specifically want their funding to be spent in and for the benefit of the local area. They want to help people reach out and meet new people who live and work in the area, especially those people who may not be involved in community groups or projects, for example those people who are elderly or disabled.

Who can apply?

Anyone can apply for the Small Sparks Grants, it doesn’t matter who you are, what you do, what abilities you have, or how old you are.

To be a Small Sparker, you just need to get together with one or more people from your local area and plan a Small Sparks project. Complete your project within a given time scale and be willing to attend a community celebration to share your story with other Small Sparkers.

Rules

Projects must

• Be open to anyone in the community who wants to take part.
• Be of benefit to adults (but can also include children)
• Involve new people in the neighbourhood, in particular those people who you might not know.
• Be based in the community you live/work in using the assets available
• Show thought about how to be welcoming to people with a disability or who are isolated or lonely.
• Be completed in the timescale.
• Make a record – in photos or video or a brief story or any other creative way you like.
• Tell the story of their project at the Small Sparks celebration event and share how it worked.
• Take place within Coxlodge, Fawdon or Kenton.
• Be based around a way of bringing local people together.