The Brent Cross Town Community Fund has opened for its fourth year, supporting local initiatives and charities.

From today (Tuesday 10 May), local groups and initiatives based in and around Cricklewood, Childs Hill, Golders Green, and West Hendon can apply for grants of anywhere between £500 and £5,000. Applications to the fund close on Friday 10th June 2022.

This year, the Community Fund has increased to £40,000 and is keen to include projects that support refugees and asylum seekers. It will continue to help projects that support mental and physical wellbeing, and foster community togetherness.

The fund, which first launched in 2019, has already granted £90,000 across 31 projects and has become an established source of support for small charities, community organisations and entrepreneurial individuals making a positive impact in the local area. It is estimated over 11,000 people in the local community have directly benefitted from the fund’s investment.

It was set up by Brent Cross Town, the new £7 billion, 180-acre net zero carbon park town in north London, which is being developed in partnership between Barnet Council and Argent Related.

Applications to the fund will be made through ActionFunder. This platform enables community groups to apply for funding with an accessible written or video pitch, making it easier than ever before to give and get funding. It also means that groups that may not be successful in this funding round have their application made available to other funders.

Brent Cross Town, together with Action Funder, are hosting two workshops and a Q&A session for local groups:

• Storytelling for funding, engagement and impact reporting will take place on 18th May between 4.30 and 6.30pm at The WorkShop, Brent Cross Town, Claremont Way. All information on how to register for the event can be found here.
• Securing funding for your non-profit with the Funding Doctor will be held on 26th May between 10am to 12.45 pm at The WorkShop, Brent Cross Town, Claremont Way. All information on how to register for the event can be found here.
• Brent Cross Town Community Fund Q&A session will be hosted on 24th May from 5 to 6.30pm at The WorkShop, Brent Cross Town, Claremont Way. The session will provide insight into what the fund is focusing on this year and advise on how to make a strong funding pitch using the ActionFunder platform. Further information on this session can be found here.

Councillor Barry Rawlings, Leader of Barnet Labour Group, said: “I am pleased to see another round of the Brent Cross Town Community Fund launch this week. Community funds like this play an important role in ensuring local projects benefit from the wider regeneration in the area, and since 2019 the fund has helped thousands of people in the community. I encourage groups and individuals to apply to this year’s fund and I look forward to seeing the project proposals as they come forward.”

All information on how to apply to the Brent Cross Town Community Fund can be found on the Brent Cross Town website, here.

Read more about projects funded by so far, here.