The Joint CRT/Urban II Grant Fund
Urban II is a Communities Initiative of the European Union and was designed to target those areas where there is greatest need for community improvement and regeneration. It aims to promote an integrated approach to tackling local social and economic problems in order to promote sustainable development.
The following six wards, which form part of the former East Durham Coalfield have been identified by the European Union as being in need of additional funding and consequently received Urban II status, they are Copt Hill and Hetton in the City of Sunderland and South Hetton, Murton East, Murton West and Haswell in the District of Easington. These include four areas within the top 10% most deprived according to the Index of Multiple Deprivation 2004 whilst all six include areas in the top 20%.
For the past three years the Coalfields Regeneration Trust (the Trust), in partnership with Urban II, has been providing advice, support and financial assistance to community and voluntary organisations that are working hard to tackle problems at grass-roots level.
The Trust is currently distributing a second tranche of Urban II funds to groups in the area with activities supported under the scheme falling within the Trust’s funding priorities of Supporting Communities, Learning Communities, Enterprising Communities and Supporting People into Work. Grants are available between £500 and £10,000 via our Bridging The Gap scheme and for larger grants up to £40,000 via our Main Grants programme. Easy access grants of up to £5,000 are also available via a Development Fund, which may be used for various training and Upskilling projects such as committee training, CRB checks, project planning assistance and exchange visits.
Recent examples of our support include the Sandhills Project for Youth Recreation and Leisure (SPYRAL) in Murton, County Durham, which is a community allotment based project providing training and learning opportunities for local young people – and the Passport to Success programme at the Hetton Centre in Hetton le Hole, which is a Volunteer Training and Development Programme. Both are making significant and valuable contributions to community regeneration.
