16 faith groups to share £1.3 million ‘New Deal’ fund to help support communities

Sixteen faith-based groups working with the most vulnerable people in local communities will receive a boost to support their work through the Government’s £1.3m Faith New Deal pilot scheme.

The groups, which include Christian, Jewish and interfaith organisations, will work in partnership with councils, schools, the police, health providers and voluntary groups to develop innovative interventions to tackle social issues affecting those most in need. support.

Projects will include providing debt and employment advice, tackling food poverty, providing support for mental health issues and tackling loneliness and isolation.

The fund will also help faith groups build on the collaboration with national and local government that occurred during the pandemic.

Examples of this include supporting government efforts to reach communities and administer the COVID-19 vaccine:

• A voluntary, community and social enterprise partner, Strengthening Faith Institutions, helped transform Greengate Mosque in Oldham into a temporary vaccination centre, where over 2,000 people from local communities received life-saving vaccinations.
• Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara in Wolverhampton worked hand-in-hand with public health services to help the government better understand the coronavirus outbreak by running testing pilots in partnership with faith groups across the city.

The Faith New Deal Fund will also inform the development of a Faith Compact that will set out key principles to aid engagement between faith groups and government.

Faith Minister Paul Scully said:

We saw the instrumental role faith organizations played in supporting vulnerable people during the pandemic. Working closely with local partners, councils and government, they support communities where they need it most.

This pilot scheme will build on that vital work so that faith-based organizations and their partners can continue to support communities as they recover.

Minister Skali recently visited West London-based Church Revival Foundation, one of the faith groups awarded the funding. Through their nationwide Love Your Neighbor project, they work in partnership with volunteers and public services to provide debt advice, job training and other care for the community.

The Revd Tom Jackson MBE, Chief Executive, Love Thy Neighbor said:

Love Thy Neighbor is delighted to be a partner in the very significant and timely launch of the Faith New Deal.

We look forward to working with local churches and partners, including statutory authorities across the UK to increase the impact of the crisis food support, debt advice, employment training and other comprehensive care that this ground-breaking initiative will enable “.

Other projects that the Faith New Deal fund will support include:

• Manchester-based Jewish Action for Mental Health (JAMH) will expand their work with other faith groups, councils and health services to provide food for those in need and work in partnership with public services to adapt the provision of mental health and to provide support to those in need.
• All Souls Serve the City, based in London, has partnered with local churches, Westminster Council, charities and the police force to improve mental wellbeing and tackle loneliness for vulnerable women.

Faith New Deal Pilot Fund: funding allocations 2022/23

List of successful applicants receiving Faith New Deal Pilot Fund awards.