Mid Sussex District Council grants over £200,000 to local community projects

PR2228/EC/MF - 02/07/2019

Mid Sussex District Council has awarded over £200,000 in grant funding to help local sports clubs and community organisations improve their facilities and services.

The Mid Sussex District Council Cabinet Grants Panel met on 18 June to discuss the grant funding allocations and the award of £205,669 to the successful applicants was confirmed on 27 June.

Haywards Heath Rugby Club has been granted £150,000 towards construction of a new state of the art multi-sports pavilion at Whiteman’s Green in Cuckfield. The current clubhouse has been repaired many times over the years but is no longer fit for purpose. Over 1,500 Mid Sussex children and adults participate in sports at Whiteman’s Green every week and this new facility will become a valuable base for lots of different local sports clubs. It will also become a community social hub providing facilities to a wide range of other local organisations. The funding has been provided by Section 106 financial contributions, payments made by developers towards the improvement of local infrastructure.
 
Brighton Science was awarded £2,500 to provide Pocket Science Festivals at five venues across Mid Sussex. The festival uses exciting activities and hands on demonstrations to reach out to children who may not engage with science in schools. The aim of the project is to make science accessible, affordable, and most importantly fun, for both the children and their parents.

St John’s Church in Felbridge secured £714 towards a pilot project to engage local teenagers and help them to learn new skills. A group of five to eight teenagers will work to repaint and modify a Toyota Celica car during the school summer holidays. The project aims to increase social inclusion, improve mental wellbeing though accomplishment, provide ownership of a creative and practical project and establish mentors and role models outside school.

The charity Relate North & South West Sussex has been granted £2,000 to enable them to continue providing counselling services in East Grinstead and the surrounding villages. Relate champions the importance of healthy relationships as a way to create strong family ties. It’s an approach which helps people to engage with their local community and reduces the need for intervention by statutory agencies. Counselling for young people helps them to deal with challenges in life and provides skills that help them to remain in school.

Councillor Norman Webster, Mid Sussex District Council Cabinet Member for Community said:

“We have some wonderful projects here that all contribute to the strong sense of community we have in Mid Sussex. There’s support for those who are vulnerable, community activities that families can enjoy together and lots of sporting opportunities that encourage people to be healthy and active.

“Many of these initiatives are only possible because local volunteers give up their time to do something special for others in the community. We must thank them for everything they are doing and I’m delighted that Mid Sussex District Council is able to demonstrate its support by providing this grant funding.”

For more information contact the Mid Sussex District Council Community Services Team on 01444 477275 or email Elaine.Clarke@midsussex.gov.uk.

ENDS

Facility Grants

Organisation	Purpose for which award is sought	Amount Awarded
Crawley Down Community Centre Association	Improvements to the Café Bar, outdoor paving and meeting rooms at the Haven Centre	£25,172
Hassocks Community Association	Improved disabled access at Adastra Hall	£8,650
Haywards Heath Rugby Club	New clubhouse at Whiteman’s Green	£150,000
Total		£183,822

 

Community and Economic Development Grants

Organisation	Purpose for which award is sought	Amount Awarded
Brighton Science	Summer holiday workshops for children	£2,500
Burgess Hill Town Council	Cinema screening in St Johns Park	£1,300
Crawley Town Community Foundation	Sports activity programme for young people at Court Bushes	£5,000
Downland School Association	‘Building Survival Skills for the Teenage Years’ parenting courses	£2,538
Haywards Heath Baptist Church	Astroturf for children’s play area	£3,150
Hurstpierpoint Gymnastics Club	Gymnastic activities and equipment	£2,025
Jubilee Hub, East Grinstead	Drop-in social group for isolated adults	£2,620
Relate North and South West Sussex	Local counselling service	£2,000
St John’s Felbridge	Holiday activity project for teenagers	£714
Total		£21,847