These Hastings groups will benefit from grant cash

In 2012, 150 of the most deprived and neglected areas of the country were each given £1m to spend improving their neighbourhoods. North-East Hastings was one of these.

The area includes Down Farm, Red Lake, Halton, Farley Bank, Broomgrove and spaces in between.

Following extensive consultation with residents, priorities were drawn up and a resident-led partnership formed. Since then, a host of projects and activities have been funded and twice a year invitations to bids of up to £1,066 from the Small Grants Fund are made.

Richard Street, partnership chairman, said: “I’m delighted we have once again been able to provide funding for a very varied set of projects which will provide support, learning and fun for a wide cross-section of the North-East Hastings community.

“This time we were oversubscribed so had to turn down a few bids but the range is very impressive. Since 2014 we have awarded £74,243 to 94 projects from our small grants pot. This is an area of serious deprivation so it is important that we do what we can to improve the lives of our residents if only in small ways. Some of the projects provide an enjoyable bit of fun while others address serious issues faced by some of our residents. Our objective is to make this a great place in which to live and work and these projects will make a contribution to that.”

The second round of grants for 2018 includes grants to: Ore in Bloom towards a Christmas tree and lights in Ore village; Oasis for winter outings and activities for older residents of the Broomgrove area through the Elderberries group; Ore in Bloom for planting daisies and sunflowers to brighten up the area and teach children about plants; Albion in the Community to provide further football sessions at Hastings Academy; Ore Centre for practical cookery demonstrations to encourage users of the centre’s community store to produce tasty, nutritious meals with food from supermarkets that would otherwise have gone to waste; Sensory Soft Play to provide soft play sessions and other activities for families with children with additional needs; and to Radiator Arts for a play project for children and their parents/carers to create a magic Zebicorn at the Broomgrove Community Centre.