Posted 4:50pm
Couple of busy days gone past.
Yesterday I spent a lot of time completing our funding application to Cloudesley - to expand and manage our Izzwalkz initiative. Overall we have asked for around £6,600. This will cover the costs to run and oversee 260 walks in Islington in one year - five a week. It averages out at approximately £25 per walk - which I think is value for money considering what we are trying to achieve.
The funding would cover first aid training for volunteers, plus a comprehensive first aid kit for each walk. It would also cover all marketing for the project - from posters and flyers, to social media and adverts, as well as our ongoing work on the website. We have asked for funding towards volunteer expenses - we need one on every walk - and this would cover travel, washing (official clothing), mobile and general time - we asked for £10 per walk for this. Finally there would be extra insurance costs - as well as clothing costs: t-shirts for summer, caps, warmer clothing in winter - all with the Izzwalkz logo on them to show they are walk leaders.
Naturally there are no guarantees on funding. We did have a good meeting with their funding director, but he explained they do get a large number of applicants. There is a total of around £50,000 to be spent, and they normally target six to seven projects, to spend anything up to £10,000. We hope our £6,600 bid will be successful. We demonstrated that our walks are aimed at all ages, but in particular the older generation, as well as those going through physical or mental health issues - and that the benefits of walking are well-documented. We can live in hope.
We have contacted Connect Help On Your Doorstep. According to their website:
"Help on Your Doorstep is a registered charity (number 1133145) working in the London Borough of Islington. Our team works across Islington, with offices in EC1, Canonbury, Caledonian Road, Finsbury Park and Archway."
"Help on Your Doorstep aims to make a visible difference to the health and well-being of the communities it serves by empowering individuals to overcome the barriers they face and improve their lives. We do this through pro-active engagement with local people, professional provision of information, advice and guidance and in partnership with local service providers."
We have asked to meet up as they have terrific connections throughout the borough and deal with many people face to face. Getting our Ajani and Izzwalkz message out could be easier through them.
Finally, we have made email contact with some significant people. I was passed the number of a director of a financial management company who may know people who would like to put money into our venture - again no promises. I have also contacted Councillor Caroline Russell who I met earlier this week, sending her more information about us, and talked about the Local Initiative Fund that can help with the walks. We have many more emails to get out.
Most important for now is preparing for our SHP meeting next week - we also have more video filming, our stop-smoking event, and another outdoor fitness session all going on. I wonder what we will be able to achieve when we actually access salary funding!!!!!
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