Community groups scoop grant cash pots

The 161 winning groups from across the country won a public vote and are to be awarded £500 funding after securing a big enough proportion of the 27,000 votes cast.

After making it through to shortlisting stage, the building society profiled each group on their website and asked the public to vote for who they thought was the most deserving.

Blackpool Recovery Group, Restore Our Clock Shelter and Fleetwood Craft Group all received enough public votes to make it into the top 161 winners.

Donna Spencer, Skipton Building Society’s Blackpool branch manager, said: “The Grassroots Giving programme is a fantastic scheme, allowing us to really delve into the heart of our local community.

“We love being able to help small, self-funded groups and give them the boost that they both need and deserve.”

Blackpool Recovery Group is a volunteer group dedicated to enabling recovery within communities by helping people abstain from alcohol or drug use.

The funding will allow the group to offer extra activities to their members and also ensure they can open for an extra night a week.

Restore Our Clock Shelter is a community group in Cleveleys set up with the aim of restoring a set of 100 year old clocks, the last standing artefacts from the seaside town’s origins.

The group is currently fund-raising in a bid to gain enough money to refurbish these clocks.

Fleetwood Craft Group is dedicated to providing craft opportunities and support within the deprived local community.

A large proportion of the club members suffer from mild to moderate mental health problems, anxiety, depression or other disabilities, and this club provides them with a safe and fun place to make friends and learn new skills.

Currently the group has to purchase all their own craft materials out of their own money and therefore this funding will go a long way in helping them.