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Big Society Local Action Trials: New Funding
NESTA (The National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts) will be piloting programmes to test out "community organising" for the Big Society agenda in England. Neighbourhood Challenge wants to demonstrate how community organisers, when equipped with the right skills, and small amounts of money, can come up with innovative responses to local priorities, particularly in areas with low levels of social capital.
Ten community organisations will be selected to participate. They will receive funding to try approaches to community organising, with practical tools and training to help them set up local campaigns, new community projects and new social enterprises. For a year from February 2011 they will receive financial and in-kind support to run their programmes in the neighbourhoods they have selected. The level of support will depend on the approach taken, but NESTA suggests at least £150,000 for each area.
NESTA says that eligible organisations could be community organisations or public bodies which work directly with communities - community centres, community organisations, housing associations, local authorities or parish councils, voluntary groups, membership bodies or others.
Deadline for submitting expressions of interest is 22nd November at 12 noon. For information and to register interest, see www.nesta.org.uk/neighbourhood_challenge.
Posted by ELN at November 3, 2010 11:27 AM