Over 4,000 Littlehampton residents will benefit from funds awarded by Littlehampton Town Council in this year’s Grant Aid Scheme.

This has been a year like no other and many of the Town’s groups have faced many challenges, some saw demand for their service dramatically increase, whilst others were unable to provide services in their usual way and had to adapt so they could continue offering much needed support.

A pot of £21,000 was made available to any charitable or not-for-profit club, group or organisation in Littlehampton, applicants needed to demonstrate that their group would benefit the residents of Littlehampton. Each application was considered based on merit, aims and objectives.

Managing the grant applications was newly appointed Community Resources Officer, Michael Grier. Michael worked for Brighton and Hove City Council for the last six years in the role of Sports Facilities Officer where he worked with an array of community groups and with major leisure operators to establish and maintain activity programmes in health and wellbeing and sports facility planning. Speaking about his first experience of the Town Council’s Grant Aid Scheme, Michael said: “I had the pleasure of speaking with many of the volunteers running community groups during the application process and what I was most impressed with was the positivity and the ’can do’ attitude they all shared. There were 30 applications this year and every single one of them will have a positive impact in our community.”

Speaking about the grants Chair of the Community Resources Committee, Councillor Billy Blanchard-Cooper said: “One of the grants that will have an immediate result is the £3,794 going to the Littlehampton & District Foodbank, a service in high demand since the start of the pandemic. This grant will be utilised to deliver a vital service to the community by enabling the group to get stock, packaging and transport goods.”

Other grants of note include grants to Life Centre to be used to offer a life changing opportunity for free specialist trauma counselling and Cancer United to be used in delivering virtual fitness sessions for their Littlehampton service users.

A full list of this year’s recipients is available here.