Grants database

Martha and Terry are two young graduates from Manchester, who are Reclaim Young Leaders and alumni. Educating All stemmed from their experiences of a shared sense of alienation at University coupled with a lack of support. It is a youth led research study that aims to explore the institutional and personal barriers faced by working class students at the top universities in the UK. Research has been conducted and was published in November 2016 and stimulated a great deal of interest. Universities have asked the team to flesh-out the research recommendations to improve recruitment and retention of working class students. Educating All will also widen the dissemination of their report and develop a ​‘toolkit’ for access officers at universities to use when working class students join their institutions.

Having worked in the voluntary and community sector, Freya Morgan recognises that funding processes and information are not accessible for most people, and can discourage those who are already at a disadvantage from applying for the resources they need to run social justice and arts projects. She plans to research the barriers to accessing funding and aims to find out whether a user-friendly online platform would help to make the process fairer, more inclusive and effective. During this 12-month project, she will conduct a survey and run focus groups across the UK to determine how the platform is shaped and which areas need targeting.

Deborah May is setting up Küche, a Glasgow-based venture that uses food and cooking to bring together the city’s diverse communities. Küche aims to promote integration among Glasgow’s migrant, refugee and host communities, celebrate multiculturalism, combat social isolation and work with local refugee and migrant chefs to promote their employability. With PHF funding, Deborah will curate a series of pop-up food events in collaboration with local refugee and migrant chefs; and she plans to set up four permanent locations for community canteens in different corners of the city.

Amy has over ten years’ experience of working with children and young people as producers, leaders and artists across a variety of art forms. Amy wants to explore the feasibility of a Birmingham ​‘Children’s Hub’ – a multifaceted space that would combine an arts programme, social enterprise and community venue focused on celebrating, supporting and championing childhood in Birmingham. At this stage, Amy will gather evidence and grow stakeholder engagement to assess the need, viability and vision for the hub.

A grant towards Transformers, a workforce development initiative aimed at people in mid-career, working in any Museum Association accredited museum (or museum working towards accreditation), looking to change the way they work. Participants are challenged to develop new ways of thinking and supported to engage with experimental ideas, fresh thinking and new learning.

Pembroke College will establish a fully funded PhD studentship (covering tuition and maintenance fees) in Refugee and Migration Studies, an area of work of great importance to the College and in particular to the late Jo Cox MP after whom the studentship will be named.

Peter Duffy founded Muscle Owl, an online media and campaigns channel dedicated to changing attitudes towards disability, in 2014. He has a unique insight into this issue: his brother, Andrew, has Duchenne muscular dystrophy, and he has worked for Muscular Dystrophy UK, which has given him experience and contacts in the sector. Although Muscle Owl has already produced over 50 podcast episodes, it has never received any funding. Peter and his co-editor Michaela would like to develop and raise awareness of the organisation, allowing it to reach more people and offer more diverse and informative material.

Gareth Hart is the co-founder of Iridescent Ideas CIC and has over twenty years’ experience of working with the social enterprise, voluntary, public and private sectors. He is committed to social enterprise: he led the bid that saw Plymouth become the UK’s first ​‘Social Enterprise City’, writes regularly on the topic, and chairs the local social enterprise network. With PHF funding his company will complete a feasibility study to understand the potential of community-owned tidal renewable energy generation in and around Plymouth, and consider how the profits could be invested in charitable projects to benefit local families.

Mum of three Sophia Parker believes that it takes a village to raise a child. She set up Little Village in early 2016 to support local families in need. The project follows the concept similar to that of a foodbank; providing clothes, toys and equipment for children aged 0–5. Sophia is an experienced social policy professional, and completed a Clore Fellowship in 2015. She would like to use her professional skills to evolve the Little Village offer, developing the model, expanding into other areas and growing its network of volunteers to create small, warm communities of families supporting each other.

Gill Wildman and Nick Durrant make up Plot, a social and commercial consultancy and associated Community Interest Company. They are partnering with Katie Shelley, a university student who is exploring how service design can work within financial inclusion. Together, they would like to prototype and test four new financial services for under-served or excluded members of the community. These services include a kite-mark for poverty premium-free services, small business support for local people, a local neighbourhood fund and a data service that discounts without stigma.

Rachael Gibbons is a young person from Manchester, who is a Young Leader with a youth organisation called Reclaim. Rachael’s idea is a leadership development programme for working class young pioneers, aiming to develop ethical, authentic, self-assured leaders. The programme will enable participants to develop and maintain effective social change leadership, through an intense programme of personal development and a ​‘disruptive leader toolkit’. Rachael will co-design the programme with young people, then deliver a challenging six month course in partnership with Reclaim staff and The Oasis School of Human Relations, followed by a three-month evaluation of the programme.

Nikki Giant has worked in youth development for over a decade and is the Founder of Full Circle Education CIC. She is a qualified counsellor, a consultant specialising in issues relating to education and youth well-being and the author of three books for educators. Her idea, Girls Hub, is an innovative approach to tackling poverty and inequality by creating a centre of excellence for girls and young women in Wales. This initiative is the first of its kind, providing a safe, girls-only environment to nurture and support young women, with evidenced-based educational programmes to support the attainment, aspirations and well-being of girls, combined with advocacy, research, and training to act as a strategic voice for girls.