Our third GRoW event on September 1, 2024 saw eight pitches for community projects – to share a pot of £1,500 in funding.
We had some rich discussions, focusing on solutions to issues, and continuing to make positive changes in our communities.
We shared lots of ideas and tips on gathering resources, with many groups already benefitting from connections made in previous events.
Feedback on previous community projects
We started the day with some quick introductions, then heard feedback from the pitchers from our previous session after funding was shared with:
Friends of Stockley Park, Appley Bridge used their £200 funding to purchase and stock a dog poo bag dispenser. This was a positive way to help people clean up after their dogs and is being well used. They also funded plaques with the group’s logo on, to show in various places how they had made additions and improvements to the council-owned park.
Laura and Sarah said: “The dispenser has made a big improvement to the cleanliness of our park.
“The plaques have gained ownership of things we have implemented in the park and raised awareness of who our small volunteer group are.
“We have £101.82 remaining and this will enable us to buy further supplies for the dispenser for the next 12 months and also for more plaques for our barrel planters and benches.
“We are so pleased we have been given the opportunity to fund these two projects through the support of GRoW.”
Let's SHAPE Our Creativity CIC, who ran free mindful art sessions with her funding. Emma said she asked for donations at the sessions, which some attendees could pay, so her money went further. As she had some funding left she asked if it would be ok to invest in fold-down tables to help her business grow by offering children’s parties. We voted and decided that it was a good idea to spend the rest of the funding on the tables.
Brighter Better Orrell (WN5), who spent their funding on resources for a huge litter pick in the area and also daffodil bulbs for Redwood Park. The children especially liked the small hi-vis jackets, making it more inclusive when they joined in with their families.
Tony said of the litter pick: “A fantastic combined effort between ourselves, Brighter Better Orrell, and the Pemberton Green Spaces volunteers this evening. We managed to pick 33 bags of rubbish between us, eventually meeting up at White Street for a chat and photograph.
“There are some litter hotspots on the Orrell/ Pemberton border and the volunteers in the area have been doing their best to keep the area tidy.
“This combined effort has made a big difference. If there are any GRoW members in that area who’d like to help please get in touch.
“A number of the local businesses have agreed to keep the areas in front of their shops litter-free, as they should, and we will provide them with equipment to help encourage them to continue.”
Friends of the Cherries Community Garden, who had originally pitched for funding to buy a swanky new sign for the garden to let people know a little about the Friends and invite them in. Thankfully, a local business stepped in and paid for the sign.
Clare had also pitched the need for a storage unit for tools etc. so volunteers didn’t have to transport them each time they visited to maintain the Garden. The funding was spent on this.
Clare presented photos of the new storage unit project as well as other features in the garden, and this sparked a great discussion on how people had done similar things in their area, or wanted to do so in future.
Rebuild with Hope Wigan’s Nicola came to feed back on the Vinted for Dummies sessions run at the community store. The GRoW funding paid for the refreshments at the sessions, which were attended by local people who wanted to get going on Vinted but weren’t confident in using the platform. The sessions enabled them to start selling, provided much-needed extra income for them and their families, as well as saving clothes from going to landfill.
Wigan & Leigh Hospice, where the funding had been used to buy squirrel-proof bird feeders. Gill explained that the gardens at the hospice were well-used and a pleasant area for people to come and sit and chat, or simply to look out onto from their rooms. The birds love the garden too but their feed had been taken by the local squirrel population. The funding was used to buy feeders that could not be accessed by the squirrels, and some stands as well as feed. Gill reported that the bird sightings were increasing and the volunteers were very happy with the feeders, especially important as winter approaches.
New round of pitching for community projects
During a nice lunch of home-made pies, courtesy of one of founder members, Claire, we met some of the members of the Greater Manchester System Changers. They have been working together with two of our founder members, Angela and Gill, on supporting community projects which resist traditional systems and focus on working class women and young people (predominantly of colour). We then heard from the pitchers from eight community projects in Wigan.
Janine from Kintsugitherapy - Mindful art sessions with teenage girls
Janine explained the art of kintsugi – making broken pottery look beautiful again by enhancing and embracing the cracks and chips, rather than trying to hide them.
This reflects how people often feel broken when going through hard times, but it is our experiences which shape us as people.
Janine has been running these and other mindful craft sessions with young people and found they proved very popular.
The funding would go towards pottery and paint materials to enable more sessions to go ahead and for more teenage girls to benefit from the sessions.
Neil from Forum of Aspull Whelley and New Springs (FAWNS) - greenhouse for community garden project in Aspull
FAWNs is an organisation which looks after green spaces in the local area. They recently got asked to take care of an allotment in Aspull, which had become overgrown and unloved, and filled with rubbish. A group of keen volunteers cleared the area, which will become a Community Allotment. They managed to fill three whole skips. Neil said: “It has been worth it though, as this space is going to be a beautiful oasis of calm for local people and wildlife, a place where folk can grow their own, learn to cook, get close to nature and enjoy being part of a social group.”
Neil pitched for funding for a greenhouse which would be used to grow seedlings and plants, and would be used by a wide range of people from the community including local schoolchildren.
Lisa from Community Corner - mindful art sessions
Arts and crafts are a regular and popular feature at Community Corner, and Lisa has been running a variety of sessions which focus on feelings and turning negatives into positives.
Lisa has been using materials including acrylic paints and pitched for funding to increase the range of equipment available, including trays to help save the tables!
Meryl - Public Living Room in Poolstock
Loneliness and isolation are affecting many people of all ages and backgrounds in our communities. Meryl has a large shed in her garden at home, which she would like to open up as a Public Living Room. We had a good discussion about the concept of a Public Living Room and how Meryl would manage it. She explained her background as a Shared Lives volunteer and background in working with vulnerable people.
Meryll’s pitch was for funding to cover the cost of a hot water dispenser, an A-board to advertise the weekly sessions and some leaflets to promote the event.
Natalie from Brighter Better Orrell - eco bags for harder-to-recycle items
While posting on social media some guidance about what can be recycled and where, BBO looked at harder-to-recycle items and after a lot of research with Superdrug, Boots and local recycling centres, there was no local option to recycle medicine blister packs.
Many local people admitted they had been incorrectly putting these in their brown bin. So, BBO purchased the Zero-Waste bag from Terracycle. Due to Terracycle specializing in more complex recycling, the bag cost £39 including delivery and disposal of the blister packs.
The bag was placed in Orrell Connect Centre – which houses a post office, café and a large hall with daily groups and activities.
Natalie said: “The feedback on social media was incredible. So many residents were waiting for the bag to be positioned, complimented us on the initiative and were saving their used packs up ready.”
Not only are BBO making Orrell more environmentally friendly, but bringing people to a common place where hopefully friendships are enhanced and formed.
Natalie pitched for the six-bag bundle, currently with a 17% offer, making it £195.
Charlotte from Mindful Events - wellbeing festival
Charlotte explained her background as a wedding event organiser, which she used when she set up Mindful Events to help people access events which would enhance their mental health and wellbeing.
One of the events which Charlotte ran was a wellbeing festival in Shevington, where she used funding to hire Shevington Youth Club. The event was attended by stallholders who showcased their businesses or organisations, from reiki practitioners to local gardening clubs. The event was well attended and the venue could have been bigger to allow for easier travel through the room
So at GRoW Charlotte pitched for funding towards the organisation of a bigger Wellbeing Festival for Wigan, at a venue where rooms could also be used for treatments.
Elaine from Shevington & District Community Association - public wheelchair for Shevington
The village of Shevington began loaning out two wheelchairs a number of years ago, as part of its bid to become an Age-Friendly Greater Manchester status – which it achieved with flying colours.
The wheelchairs are lent out to people who just need their use on a temporary basis – this could be for one afternoon to take someone shopping or for a few weeks or even months if a relative comes to stay, for example. The folding wheelchairs have been greatly received and well-used by the community, and Elaine pitched for funding for a third so that more people could use them and they could be more widely marketed for use.
Kai from local community gardening project - tool storage for green space in Springfield
A piece of unused land in Springfield has been adopted by some local people with the aim of creating a “sitting place” – a garden which is accessible for the community just to come and spend a few minutes in nature, perhaps reading a book or watching the birds. Kai pitched for a community storage unit for storing gardening tools and equipment that can be accessed by people who would like to help maintain the area.
Participatory budgeting in action!
After hearing each pitch, the whole group got one vote each and could choose four options:
1. Don’t back the idea
2. Like the idea but it’s not ready yet
3. Back the idea for partial funding
4. Back the idea for full funding
The numbering system means we can split the pot appropriately if needed. Luckily on this occasion, we had enough funding to back all the ideas in for full amounts pitched! (A maximum of £200.)
We invited all our pitchers above to come back to the next event (date TBC) to feed back to the rest of the group.
If you would like to be part of the GRoW network and pitch at our next event, or just be informed about what we’re up to, please sign up as a member!
