Staff and volunteers at Blythe House Hospicecare’s charity shop in Chapel-en-le-Frith are urging local people to stop unloading items outside when the store is closed.

Since the High Street shop re-opened after lockdown on Monday 15^th June, it has been inundated with kind donations from local residents who have been taking time to have clear outs during the government restrictions.

Despite display signage politely asking people to not drop off donations outside of opening times, dozens of people continue to leave items in the shop’s doorway or on the pavement.

Marie Brown, Retail Manager, said: ‘We are so very grateful for the fantastic donations that we have received since we re-opened after lockdown – these items are helping us to raise thousands of pounds for local hospice care – supporting people affected by life-limiting illnesses in our community.

‘Over the last few weeks though, I have regularly come to open up the shop in the morning, or after a weekend, to find mounds of items piled up outside the door or on the pathway. We haven’t had the best summer so far, so more often than not, the items are soaked through after heavy rain.

‘Due to current government restrictions, we have to quarantine all donations for three days before we’re able to be sort them and put out for sale in our shops. Wet or damaged items cause us issues with storage and hygiene, as well as the safety of our staff and volunteers.

‘We politely ask that you please do not leave donations outside the shop – this is classed as fly-tipping and is a punishable offence. My volunteer team and I are so eager to help you with your very kind donations, when the shop is open. To check or ask any questions in advance, please do not hesitate to call us on: 01298 814587.’

For more information about Blythe House shop services during the current situation, visit: https://blythehousehospice.org.uk/our-shops/

The Volunteer Centre Chesterfield & NE Derbyshire have just launched a wonderful site displaying and selling the original work of Derbyshire photographer and author David Radford. All the proceeds will go to the projects and activities of The Volunteer Centre – Chesterfield & NE Derbyshire.

Photographs are available in postcard, A4 and A3 sizes, and start at just a £1.00.

They invite you to head over to the site now, see what impresses you most, and help support their work – https://fullcircleimages.store/

No child should ever go hungry; free school meals play a large part in ensuring that children have a nutritious meal to support their physical and intellectual growth.

Research shows that diet has a “significant and immediate effect” on behaviour, concentration and cognitive ability (CPAG & British Youth Council report ‘Going Hungry’). Free school meals are therefore essential to help children reach their potential.

Based on the average price of a school meal you could save £400 a year if you are eligible for your child to receive free school meals. Your child’s school will also benefit by receiving £1000 for every pupil entitled to free school meals which can be used to provide extra resources.

Children who are entitled to free school meals receive the same food and sit in the same area as children who pay for their own meals; there is no distinction.

To find out more, or to register, visit www.derbyshire.gov.uk/freeschoolmeals

Click HERE to download the Easy Read Guidance for households with possible coronavirus (COVID-19) infection.

Lloyds Bank Foundation are delighted to announce new funding for small and local charities helping people overcome complex social issues and recover beyond the immediate COVID-19 crisis.

Charities can apply for a two-year unrestricted grant of £50,000 from Monday 3 August at 10am.

To find out more about the COVID Recovery Fund visit: https://www.lloydsbankfoundation.org.uk/about-us/covid#Recover

The COVID Recovery Fund will offer 140 charities a two-year unrestricted grant of £50,000 alongside the support of a Development Partner to help charities identify and act on any organisational challenges they are facing.

To ensure this funding is distributed equitably, a minimum of 25% of the grants will be awarded to charities led by Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic communities. Eligibility criteria will also be flexed for charities operating in Wales and those based in the six communities they are partnered with.

Full eligibility guidelines will be published this week and there will be a Q&A webinar with the Lloyds Bank Foundation grants team to talk through and answer questions about the fund on 11^th August between 2 pm – 3.30 pm. Click HERE to book your place.

Visit the Lloyds Bank Foundation website to stay up to date.

As a result of the Coronavirus outbreak, it is predicted that more children than ever could go hungry across the UK this year. Demand for food support is expected to increase by around 40% according to FareShare UK, the UK’s largest food charity, as more families face severe financial pressures because of the pandemic. 

Statistics from Derbyshire County Council indicate that applications for free school meals increased by over 600% between March and May, compared to the same time in 2019, demonstrating that many living in the county are experiencing these pressures first-hand.

Thanks to a recent campaign from footballer Marcus Rashford, the free school meals vouchers continue to be available over the summer holidays – but many families will still struggle with food insecurity this year.

Matlock based charity, Rural Action Derbyshire, heads up the Feeding Derbyshire partnership which works with a number of voluntary and public sector bodies to support food projects around the county.

Feeding Derbyshire has secured funding from Feeding Britain for School Holiday Food Projects and FareShare Midlands who have received support from Central England Co-operative to provide food to 18 different clubs around Derbyshire this summer.

The Summer Holiday food offer will deliver up to four days’ worth of supplies each week to every child registered with participating clubs over the six week summer holiday period.

Packages include staples such as breakfast cereal, pasta, rice, tinned goods, fruit, and healthy snacks, allowing families to take food away and make meals at home. There will also be the option for chilled foods, allowing clubs to make meals in bulk, as Feeding Derbyshire attempt to accommodate the food requirements of all of those in need.

The project aims to reach at least 1,400 disadvantaged children across Derbyshire, providing over 100,000 meals and 85,000 pieces of fruit over the summer holidays.

These packages are being delivered in reusable bags which can be returned, helping to promote a culture of recycling and refilling.

Feeding Derbyshire has also provided a cash grant enabling clubs to purchase additional items for children, including toiletries, sanitary items and craft materials. Groups will also have access to virtual activity bundles to keep kids entertained while schools remain closed.

By providing healthy, balanced food packages to children during the break, the Summer Holiday Food Project will boost Feeding Derbyshire’s ambition of ensuring the most vulnerable people have access to nutritious meals.

This is just one of many crucial programmes organised by Rural Action Derbyshire, which creates and champions sustainable solutions to tackling food insecurity and rural poverty, and works with 28 food banks and 22 community cafes across the county.

Over the last two months alone, this work has helped Derbyshire food projects to double the amount of food provided to local people.

Funding shortfall – can you help?

However, facing a potentially overwhelming demand for food, Feeding Derbyshire may lack the necessary funds to continue providing these essential services for vulnerable people.

It is estimated that it will cost upwards of £88,000 to continue to support children and families over the next academic year – although this figure could rise if the free school meal voucher scheme is withdrawn after the summer.

This would create a cash shortfall between October half term and Easter meaning that children would go hungry as families struggle to cope during the school holidays.

If you would like to help support this vital work, please support Rural Action Derbyshire’s fundraising campaign via their website: https://www.ruralactionderbyshire.org.uk/Appeal/school-holiday-clubs-2020 and share it via  your social media channels.

The Masonic Charitable Foundation Later Life Inclusion grants programme is open to local and national charities that are working to reduce loneliness and isolation in later life.
Charities can apply for a small or large grant, depending on their income.
Grants are available for core costs.

There are two scales – small grants from £500 to £15,000 and large grants up to £60,000.

Click here for more information

Borderline Arts focuses specifically on Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD). They use arts and creativity to raise awareness of this often misunderstood mental health conditionn and to tackle the stigma that surrounds it.

They have launched a postcard project and would like to invite anyone with Borderline Personality Disorder (anywhere in the world!) to join in with this new venture!

They are asking for participants to send them postcard-sized (150 mm x 105 mm, landscape) pieces of art created in any medium: pencil, paint, collage, photography etc. The artwork can be of anything at all, as long as it is a positive or neutral image, which is suitable to give as a ‘thank you’ gift!!

These postcards will be used in 2 ways:
Digital Montage: Photographs of these postcards will be compiled together as a digital wall montage on the Borderline Arts website, to showcase the artwork, promote you as artists and hopefully inspire others to also get involved!

Thank You Cards: Borderline Arts will use the physical copies of the postcards as thank you cards to give to those who support Borderline Arts. They hope that receiving a message written on a one-of-a-kind postcard created by someone with BPD will be really special for them to receive (and hopefully it will be special for you to have been part of that too!).

Visit https://www.borderlinearts.org/postcardproject to find out to take part.

Borderline Arts have lots of other exciting projects for Spring/Summer 2020, you can find out more HERE.

Tesco Bags of Help has responded to the current COVID-19 crisis by setting up a new fund to support local communities. In order respond quickly to the emergency they have created a streamlined application and payment process to make it easier to get funds out quickly.

If your application is successful the fund will provide a single payment award of £500 to organisations who are supporting vulnerable groups. The programme is set up to support organisational need in this time of crisis rather than fund specific projects with the situation of the Coronavirus.

Link to apply: https://tescobagsofhelp.org.uk/tesco-cv-fund/

For any queries please contact: tescocv@groundwork.org.uk