Voluntary and community organisations in Rochdale will be eligible for funding from the Know Your Neighbourhood Fund, a £30 million pot of money to be shared out amongst 27 local authorities in England. Funding will largely be awarded on an individual project basis.

Rochdale MP, Tony Lloyd, said, “Whilst £30 million shared amongst 27 different Councils doesn’t seem like an awful lot, it is worth organisations across Rochdale applying for this funding.

“Some of the most disadvantaged areas in Rochdale and across the piece are missing out and people in these areas are less likely to volunteer regularly and are more likely to experience loneliness.

“I welcome the aims of this fund to tackle this and to widen participation in volunteering. I would encourage organisations to apply for this fund.”

In partnership with the National Lottery Community Fund, the Know Your Neighbourhood Fund will run until March 2025 and will support people living in disadvantaged areas to connect with others in their community and engage in volunteering, with the aim of improving wellbeing and pride in place. It will also aim to generate and share learning which will help to support sustained action beyond the lifetime of the fund.

To keep up to date on the fund and how to apply, visit the Gov.uk website here.

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Notes for editors:-

• Know Your Neighbourhood Fund 27 local authorities, including Rochdale, are eligible for funding via Arts Council England, National Lottery Heritage Fund and National Lottery Community Fund.

• The 27 areas were identified using the English Index of Multiple Deprivation and the Community Needs Index.

• The 2019 English Index of Multiple Deprivation was used to identify high-need local authority districts based on household income and local economic factors.

• The 2019 Community Needs Index was used to identify high-need local authority districts based on the strength of civil society and community participation factors. The nine highest-need local authority districts were selected from each of the following categories: large urban areas, medium urban areas and small urban/rural areas.