Local community groups get £68k in funding

Twenty community groups in Hull have received more than £68,000 in funding.

The grants, awarded by the Hull Community Fund, will help the groups tackle local needs, focusing on health and wellbeing, education, culture, and environment.

It is the second round of funding since the fund launched in 2024.

The money is expected to benefit more than 18,000 residents and will support local organisations like Mama T's Dance School and Beats Bus Records.

The Hull Community Fund was set up by Hull City Council, Hull CVS, HEY Smile Foundation, Forum CIO, and Two Ridings Community Foundation.

It is supported by the Alderman Jackson Endowment, provided by Hull City Council, a three-year grant from the Rank Foundation, and a number of small donations.

The latest funding round is supporting Mama T's Dance House to offer free street dance lessons to children.

With the money, Rhema Counselling and Recovery Services is creating a peer-led safe space for women affected by abuse.

Beats Bus Record is also taking its mobile recording studio into under-resourced neighbourhoods and running a six-week programme teaching young people how to rap, write lyrics and DJ.

Other groups are using their funding to provide art therapy sessions, inclusive exercise classes, youth programmes, and employability support.

Grants were allocated by a panel which included six Hull residents.

Thomas Waring, head of grants at Two Ridings Community Fund, said the process was "a way of shifting power, ensuring decisions are made by those who truly understand the needs of our communities".

The Hull Community Fund reopens for applications in the summer.

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