Residents with ideas to improve their local community to be funded by Liverpool initiative

Ideas which make Liverpool and its communities more vibrant, resilient and connected could receive financial backing to make them a reality.

The city’s Acting Mayor, Councillor Wendy Simon, has launched a brand new round of funding as part of Crowdfund Liverpool – an initiative which aims to give residents who have exciting and innovative ideas to improve their local area the financial support to do so.

Organised via the platform Spacehive, £50,000 has been allocated for these projects.

This latest round of funding will be the third since the scheme launched in February 2020, and will see up to £10,000 invested in each approved proposal.

To date, 20 projects involving more than 800 residents, businesses and other organisations have been brought to life. These range from food composting initiatives and festivals, right through to community cycling schemes and cafes.

One success story is Liverpool Lighthouse – a group dedicated to the regeneration of North Liverpool. They received a grant which they used to kick-start their own crowdfunding campaign to bring a new community cinema to Anfield.

The deadline to submit ideas is Wednesday 21 April 2021.

To get started, simply visit Spacehive’s website and create a dedicated project page.

Spacehive will also lead a programme of events for anyone who is interested in learning a little bit more, or for those who might want to test or discuss ideas, that they would like to put forward first.

Liverpool’s Acting Mayor, Councillor Wendy Simon, said:

“We’re excited to launch the third funding round of Crowdfund Liverpool with Spacehive and I can’t wait to see the ideas that are put forward.

“One of the positives over the last few months has been the enthusiasm to reimagine spaces in our city and to do things differently.

“We need to grasp the chance to build on this as part of the city’s recovery and I want local people to be at the very heart of that.

“They know best the challenges and opportunities where they live and Crowdfund Liverpool gives them a much stronger voice in shaping those places, putting them and their ideas in the driving seat to help build more resilient and connected communities.”

Lighthouse Venue Manager, Sarah Jones, said:

“Words cannot describe how grateful we are to receive a £10,000 pledge from the Mayoral Inclusive Growth fund to help make this dream of ours a reality for North Liverpool.

“Particularly during these times, we all really need something to look forward to, and by receiving this amazing funding it puts us one step closer to bringing film back to our disadvantaged area. 2021 will be the year for our community and we cannot wait to be hosting regular film screenings.”

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Liverpool City Council’s Cabinet Member for Communities and Partnerships, Councillor Liz Parsons said:

“I’m calling on companies and foundations that love Liverpool to join us in offering support for the ideas that are proposed – whether that be funding or in-kind support.

“The more people that get involved and work in partnership, we can make this a real success and we can create even more amazing places together.”

Free online events are taking place on Wednesday 10 and Tuesday 16 March. Book your place here.