How the third sector is responding to the pandemic
Emergency grants launched by Lottery
National Lottery Heritage Fund is moving quickly to respond to the changing needs of the heritage sector in the COVID-19 crisis, announcing that its emergency grants can also be used to help organisations to recover and reopen, and extending its application deadline to the end of July. The £50 million Heritage Emergency Fund was set up at speed in late April to help the UK’s heritage survive the significant impact of the COVID-19 epidemic. Thanks to money raised by National Lottery players, hundreds of grants have now been awarded, addressing immediate pressures for those most in need. But in a climate where their existing business model may no longer be fit for purpose, heritage organisations still face significant challenges as they look towards recovery. Ros Kerslake, Chief Executive, National Lottery Heritage Fund, said: “This is still a time of great change and uncertainty for heritage organisations, and we are with them in heart and mind right now as they take uncertain steps back into a fast-changing world. We are keen to help them in planning for the recovery that is so vital for heritage, its people and communities.” Grants have so far supported heritage organisations with essential costs to keep them afloat, from core staff wages to utility bills. They can now also be used to build the foundations of recovery, which may include new operating and business plans, investing in digital, or the potentially significant costs of reopening.
Marie Curie reopens
End of life care charity, Marie Curie, will be opening the doors of its charity shop in Bearsden on Monday 29 June, and urgently needs the support of customers now more than ever. This will be the first and only Scottish Marie Curie shop to open at this time. The coronavirus has had, and continues to have, a devastating effect on Marie Curie’s fundraising income – income upon which is relied upon to be able to provide vital care and support for dying people and their loved ones. The charity needs to raise a quarter of a million pounds a week to run its Scottish services which include the Marie Curie Hospice, Glasgow, at Springburn and nursing service supporting people in their own homes across Greater Glasgow and Clyde. Following the government announcement about an easing of restrictions for the retail sector, the Marie Curie Bearsden shop will be opening its doors after being closed for a number of weeks due to the pandemic. It will be the only Scottish Marie Curie shop opening as part of a pilot, chosen especially as it allows space for social distancing. Ann-Marie Strang, Marie Curie retail district manager, said: “Not only do our shops provide a vital income so we can continue caring for dying people and their loved ones, but we know lots of customers have also missed being able to come into our shop, hunt for a bargain and talk to our staff and volunteers. Charity shops give a sense of community you don’t always get in other high-street stores.”
Share the love launches
Charities across the world – from Australia, UK, New Zealand, Malaysia, India and Argentina to Canada, Singapore, Ireland, the USA and Hong Kong have come together during lockdowns the world over to rethink how to care for the communities they serve. The resulting campaign, Now Share the Love, unites a wide range of charities and communities for a common goal: to recognise the hope and possibility that charity has to change peoples’ lives. ‘Now Share the Love’ is a simple and uplifting campaign. Individuals across the globe have been participating by 1. Making a heart with their hands; 2. Uploading the picture to their social media platforms; 3. Making a small donation and tagging their friends and family with #nowsharethelove on their socials in supporting people affected by the coronavirus crisis. In the UK, Action for Children, Breast Cancer Now, British Lung Foundation, Crisis, Dementia UK, Diabetes UK, Refuge, Scope, British Heart Foundation and Young Minds are collaborating to benefit from Now Share the Love. All of the funds raised are being shared equally amongst the consortium of charities to enable them to continue supporting those who are socially or economically disadvantaged, including the homeless, victims of domestic abuse, and those with mental or physical health conditions.
Cash awarded for vital service
Sanctuary Scotland has received nearly £100,000 to support communities through the COVID-19 pandemic. The social housing provider has been awarded £96,000 by the Scottish Government to ensure essential services are available to vulnerable people and those isolated or shielding. This includes the provision of food and medicines as well as wellbeing support and activity packs for children who are unable to attend school. The grant is part of the £350 million Supporting Communities Fund which is being managed by the Scottish Federation of Housing Associations to assist in the country’s COVID-19 response effort. Sanctuary Scotland, which manages more than 7,000 homes, will work with its partner organisations to support communities in Aberdeenshire, Dundee, Glasgow, Cumbernauld and Renfrewshire. Among these are the Salvation Army, Trussell Trust, Ardler Village Trust, The Pyramid at Anderston, Cumbernauld Action on Care for the Elderly (CACE), Donside SCIO and the Cumbernauld Resilience Group.
Hospice windfall
The Morrisons Foundation has provided Children’s Hospices Across Scotland (CHAS) with a grant of £17,000. The donation has helped CHAS to create the UK’s first virtual hospice to support children with life-shortening conditions and their families. This innovative new service aims to help families who are shielding or unable to visit a hospice during the coronavirus pandemic and beyond. The virtual hospice will offer families nursing, medical and pharmacy advice by phone and video as well as a series of fun activities. These include a storytelling service for children, letter writing workshops, art clubs and even virtual visits by the hospice’s clown doctors. Rami Okasha, CEO at CHAS said, “We are incredibly grateful for this extremely generous donation from the Morrisons Foundation. The grant of £17,000 will go towards funding our virtual hospice service which is helping children and families in our care stay connected during this extremely challenging time. These funds will help us reach even more vulnerable families during this crisis, and beyond.”
Furloughed volunteers dig deep
A newly founded group in Glasgow is encouraging residents to keep their area tidy to benefit their community and themselves during furlough. Members of Pollokshields Space Force have taken weeding and rejuvenating green spaces into their own hands and founder Ewan Hoyle, 40, is calling for others to do the same. Their efforts have not gone unnoticed from the community, with local MP Alison Thewliss lending her support to the campaign. Ewan, who has been furloughed since March, started clearing up a local park and was gratified to not only feel “useful” but also “connected to the community”. The project started when he decided to tidy up a nearby park which was “tired and messy”. He said: “I just took out a brush one day and started clearing it up and found that incredibly satisfying. “It is just really satisfying to do something nice that other people can benefit from rather than just doing up my own garden.” Having finished clearing up the park, he decided to branch out and continue the work he found “enormously enjoyable”. At the end of May he started a Facebook group, Pollokshields Space Force, which gathered more than a hundred members in just one day. Ewan has encouraged those interested in starting up a similar project in their area to contact him though the Pollokshields Space Force Facebook page.
