Community spirit soaring as Crowdfund Shropshire nears funding target

Crowdfund Shropshire, the civic fundraising platform dedicated to helping local community groups turn ideas into reality, is calling on residents to provide a final push to its current round of projects.

The initiative has seen overwhelming success, with 42 community projects launched and almost all reaching their financial goals, delivering vital work across the county.

The platform provides a mechanism for local organisations to secure both public donations and grant funding, and Shropshire Council is strongly encouraging residents to visit the website to find out how they can support the remaining initiatives.

A small donation, starting from as little as £2, can make a real difference, and the council stresses that every contribution is appreciated. Beyond financial support, people are also invited to comment on project pages to offer encouragement to the dedicated volunteers and activists.

Projects Seeking Final Support

The projects currently looking for the last bit of support include:

Building Bonds Through Shared Journeys: A crucial project from the Shropshire Foster Carers Association, providing events, trips, and expert support to the fostering community, benefiting looked-after children, birth family members, and foster carers.

Amy’s Story: Alcohol Awareness Workshops: Share Shrewsbury aims to design, deliver, and evaluate 10 pilot educational workshops for year 8 children, helping them stay safe from alcohol harm.

Creative Inclusive Outdoor Experiences: The Cavalier Centre charity is working to create inclusive outdoor spaces, featuring the planting of 25 fruit trees, bird boxes, and a scenic picnic area for disabled and disadvantaged individuals.

Creative Connections: Upcycling workshops and events from the Rainy Day Trust, blending artistic exploration with practical skill-building to foster creativity and connection.

Holding Grief, Growing Hope: Shropshire Grief Tending CIC is looking to provide grief cafes and one-to-one support to build emotional resilience and connection within the wider community.

Crucially, each project will receive a financial pledge from Shropshire Council via the UK Shared Prosperity Fund. This fund is targeted at improving pride in place and increasing life chances across the UK through investment in communities.

A Call for Investment in Local Heroes

Councillor Alex Wagner, Deputy Leader and portfolio holder for communities, lauded the efforts of local volunteers and urged the public to get involved.

“Many local residents volunteer, participate in community projects and work incredibly hard to have a positive impact on the lives of other local people or the environment,” said Cllr Wagner. “We want to celebrate these efforts and despite financially challenging times, do what we can to invest in community projects.”

He added, “If you are a local resident or local business please consider giving a few pounds to enable these projects to reach their target and achieve their ambitions.”

Sarah Dodds, feedback and insight team leader, confirmed that these are the last initiatives in the current funding round.

“The remaining projects are the last of our current funding round. We don’t have an open funding opportunity available for new projects but we are working hard in the background to try and fund new investment for the future. We understand how important it is to help secure funds for our community groups and activists,” Ms Dodds explained.

Residents interested in supporting these final, vital community efforts can find more information and donate on the Crowdfund Shropshire website.