£400,000 funding for disadvantaged neighbourhoods in the West Midlands
It's part of the Mayor's plan to grow the economy
Eight community-focussed organisations are being handed £400,000 of new funding to spearhead the levelling up of some of the most disadvantaged neighbourhoods in the West Midlands.
They will use Commonwealth Games legacy cash from the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) to help them identify specific projects that can improve their communities, and then act as a springboard to bring in further investment to help deliver them.
This could be new community facilities or services, regular events to improve health and wellbeing, or education and training opportunities.
This new investment by the WMCA is part of a £2 million plan to grow the social economy - using profits to achieve positive community and environmental impact.
Andy Street, Mayor of the West Midlands and WMCA chair, said: “Across the region we have around 10,000 social economy businesses and organisations providing valuable jobs, training, housing and other services which are all being delivered by local people for the benefit of local people. These are underpinned by a central aim of doing good for their communities.
“We’ve decided to put money directly into their hands to support them to identify and deliver even more ways in which they can make a positive difference to the lives and futures of local people.
"I look forward to seeing how these plans progress and the positive impact they have on local people’s lives in 2024 and beyond.”
In the West Midlands, the social economy is already worth £3.5 billion a year and directly impacts the lives of over 250,000 people - as employees, volunteers or as beneficiaries.
Cllr Kerrie Carmichael, WMCA portfolio lead for inclusive communities, and leader of Sandwell Council, said: “This investment in an important area of the economy is a tangible example of our commitment to inclusive growth – something that is at the heart of the WMCA’s vision for a region where people thrive in the places they live and work.”