Crowdfund East Sussex in action
Crowdfund East Sussex :
www.crowdfunder.co.uk/funds/east-sussex-community-wellbeing
Crowdfunder partners with East Sussex County Council to support projects that are helping to create social equity, economic prosperity, cultural vitality and environmental sustainability across the county.
Together we support a wide range of projects that help people and the planet to thrive, with priority given to projects addressing existing inequalities.
As ever, it’s when you look at the detail of the community projects that you get a real understanding of the impact they are having, and why it is so important for them to have the funding and the community support that matched crowdfunding helps to crystalise.
Here then is a collection of the latest successfully crowdfunded projects - and a prompt to encourage you - if you are in East Sussex - to have a look at the current round of match funding there...
Many (maybe most) of us will understand how important it is for schools to have safe and lovely outside areas for their pupils. In Lewes, Iford & Kingston Primary school has raised ￡10,240 ( plus close to another thousand pounds in gift aid) to develop the school's outdoor learning provision. This is clearly a well thought-out plan to improve the existing garden and build a pond, forest school and allotment area, accessible by all students including those with disabilities and special education needs - both as part of the school day and also extra-curricular activities.???
The support came from 59 supporters in 55 days including a ￡5,000 pledge from East Sussex County Council.
Crowdfunder:? www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/great-outdoors-project
Hastings Independent Press (HIP) is a community-run newspaper. Its aim is to give a voice to local residents, support a strong sense of community and provide an impartial platform for debate, employment, education and community-led regeneration. They set out to run a free multimedia journalism training programme for 18-30 year olds from Hastings with backgrounds that are under-represented in journalism.?
Key aims were to address the lack of representation/diversity in journalism by providing a route into the profession, whilst also contributing to high quality local journalism, and addressing mental health challenges to boot!?
By 12th January 2023, HIP had raised? ￡10,066 with 84 supporters in 56 days, including a ￡5k pledge from East Sussex County Council and will now be able to start work on their project, delivering a very real opportunity to 12 young people in the county.?
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Three projects in St Leonard’s on Sea responded to the call to crowdfund their community ideas and apply for match funding:?????
Willow Tree Children's Support provides support to children, young people and their families experiencing the impact of family illness, bereavement or suicide.?
The team at Willow tree set out to raise ￡5,000 to support their peer support groups in local Primary and Secondary Schools and community spaces in Battle, Robertsbridge, Bexhill, St Leonards and the surrounding villages. They know that that figure will enable them to offer 8 weeks of free support to 4 schools they had identified in the Rother community and also to host 1 after school group in a suitable community space.
By 5th January 2023, Willow Tree had raised? ￡6,429 with 113 supporters in 48 days, including a ￡3k pledge from East Sussex County Council and - as they say - it’s not even just about the money: the sharing and spreading the word of their campaign and the but wonderful words of support and encouragement.?
Also in St Leonards, the newly rebranded and relaunched community Clifton Centre (formerly the Southwater Area Community Centre) crowdfunded towards the cost of a new lift. With up to 400 local people using the centre each week, accessibility throughout is high on the list of needs for the building.??
They successfully raised ￡3,516 with 52 supporters in 56 days including a ￡1,500 pledge from East Sussex County Council. The plan is to install a lift so as to give full access to the building to wheelchair users, those with mobility impairments or with chronic illness resulting in limited energy, not to mention pregnant women or those with a little one and pram.?
And last but by no means least the W.Ave? - a not for profit whose mantra is “Getting the community together to do amazing things” have an ambitious aim to provide a community hub at what was once a shed factory and tram depot on Bexhill Road. The vision is to provide a space where people can drop in and work for a day. Upskill, learn about themselves, be inspired and find support with like-minded people. Think affordable, creative spaces and workshop areas, pop up galleries', a community wall garden, relaxation area and more.
W.Ave has raised ￡15,477 so far with a pledge of ￡5,000 from East Sussex County Council and a further ￡5,000 from the Marks & Spencer Community Energy Fund - another Crowdfunder Partner fund. The crowdfunder is still open so pledges can still be accepted.
All five projects clearly bring benefits to their respective communities. If you are involved with an existing project (or have an idea for one) that helps to create social equity, economic prosperity, cultural vitality and environmental sustainability in East Sussex, there is a ￡25,000 pot of funding available? (up to ￡5,000 available per project). You’ll need to set up a crowdfunding campaign and apply to the East Sussex Community Wellbeing Fund - 2023'? before 1 February. Don't worry, this is just the first step and the campaign can be a rough draft.
More guidance and details of eligibility, as well as the ability to get started can be found at: