Deprived and disadvantaged areas in Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire have been selected for a share of the East Midlands Mayor’s £3m Community Development Fund.
Mayor Claire Ward, of the East Midlands Combined County Authority, High Peak MP Jon Pearce, and the Minister of State for Local Government and English Devolution, Jim McMahon, launched the scheme with a visit to Gamesley Community Centre, near Glossop in Derbyshire, in September, after Gamesley and nine other deprived areas in the region were invited to bid for funding.
Ms Ward, who announced the recipients of the funding on 9 February, said: “I’m incredibly proud to announce the first projects supported by my Community Development Fund.
“This fund is about backing people who know their communities best. By investing in local ideas, local leadership and local ambition, we’re giving communities the tools and confidence to take control of their future. This is long-term investment in people, not short-term fixes.”
The new Mayor’s Community Development Fund is aimed at tackling deprivation and improving lives in disadvantaged areas. It aims to boost community resilience, increase local skills, and enable people to take control of shaping their own neighbourhoods.
In Gamesley, health, sport, learning and volunteering opportunities will be brought together under one roof after The Bureau charity was granted £191,570 under the Mayor’s Community Development Fund for the neighbourhood’s Gamesley Wellbeing Hub at Gamesley Community Centre.
The Mayor and the English Devolution Minister met with staff, volunteers and users during the funding scheme’s launch at Gamesley Community Centre, which hosts many activities, including boxing, football and holiday clubs.
Ms Ward has said she wants to see real change in East Midlands communities, particularly in areas that have been left behind and have not had the chance to build facilities, skills and investment within their communities, and to deliver transformational investment.
Gamesley Community Centre Chief Officer Helen Thornhill, who has been working with the community in different ways for ten years, has said that Gamesley has been neglected because it is set so far north but so close to Manchester. She feels it has been isolated, the amenities have been poor, and the estate has become run-down.
Gamesley Community Centre was saved from closure in 2024 thanks to support from MP Jon Pearce and High Peak Borough Cllr Damien Greenhalgh, which has made the Mayor’s announcement especially significant for the community.
Ms Thornhill has said that there is a strong sense of community support in Gamesley, and that the funding will help to give the neighbourhood a boost, as the centre wants to help residents find jobs and boost their confidence and life skills.
East Midlands Mayor Ms Ward explained that the criteria used when considering applicants for the funding included evidence-based assessments of places with the highest levels of deprivation, the lowest levels of investment, and where there has been a lack of support.
The fund will support 10 priority areas across the East Midlands Combined County Authority region, including Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire, where communities face high levels of disadvantage and have limited numbers of local community and voluntary groups.
Years of reduced funding and support have made it harder for these areas to build and sustain the organisations they need to lead local solutions, according to EMCCA.
Community-led schemes in key areas, including Gamesley, have now each been awarded up to £300,000 to support projects designed to build skills, strengthen resilience and help residents shape the future of their own neighbourhoods.
The aim of the fund is to support the communities that need it most, by backing community-led solutions to local challenges, strengthening pride in place and supporting safer, healthier and more inclusive neighbourhoods.
It aims to help communities build skills and confidence so they can take a stronger role in shaping their future and share in the region’s growth.
Ms Ward said: “My commitment as Mayor is simple – opportunity should not depend on where you live. This fund is one way we’re making sure every part of the East Midlands has the chance to grow, thrive and shape its own future.”
Other organisations across Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire set to receive a share of the Mayor’s £3m Community Development Fund include the following:
The Community Interest Company has been awarded £296,766 for Normanton Together in Derby, which will use Normanton Park as a hub to create inclusive spaces, while 176 Project Nile Scouts in Derby has been awarded the same amount for its Scout Hut refurbishment project.
At the neighbouring Derby Arboretum, £100,000 in match-funded grants will be distributed to more than 20 grassroots organisations, and Community Action Derby has been awarded £257,507 for Arboretum Matters, which also aims to set up three community-led investment panels and train 45 community leaders, increasing the sustainability and impact of the organisations.
Parkside High Community Interest Company in Cotmanhay, Derbyshire, has secured £224,307 for a scheme, Future Cotmanhay, which aims to support stronger communication, increased resident participation and expanded volunteering opportunities to help communities meet social and economic challenges.
In Bestwood, Nottingham, The Bestwood Partnership has been awarded £270,223 for The BEST Step Forward, which will provide tailored employability support for people aged 16-plus. It will also offer welfare and benefits advice, and mentoring for young people aged 10 and over.
The Renewal Trust has been awarded £291,929 for Dales Doing It Together, which aims to create a cleaner, safer and more connected neighbourhood, with targeted community grants to respond to residents’ priorities in the Dales area of Nottingham.
The Academy Transformation Trust has been awarded £228,634 to revitalise Willets Court Community Centre in Leamington, Sutton-in-Ashfield, Nottinghamshire, with improved facilities and upgraded communication through new noticeboards to create a vibrant, resident-led wellbeing hub.
Warsop Parish Council in Nottinghamshire has been awarded more than £252,868 for Future Warsop, which will help improve facilities for young people and create a community park for families, as well as a flexible resource for grassroots community activity.
A number of smaller grants have also been awarded, while funding has been allocated to the priority areas of Shirebrook North and Worksop South-East, as EMCCA continues to work with partners in the region to confirm successful bids.
East Midlands Mayor Ms Ward said: “At my engagement events, people told me they wanted to help unlock the East Midlands’ potential.
“My Community Development Fund is about making sure that potential isn’t capped by postcode – and that every community has the chance to thrive.”
