Covid-19: Community Resilience Fund launched

THE Oxfordshire Community Foundation (OCF) has announced a new fund and package of support available to help community and voluntary organisations meet the new needs and challenges created by the Coronavirus emergency. 

OCF’s new Community Resilience Fund has been kick-started with a donation from the Indigo Trust and has already reached more than £500,000. At a time when they have never been more needed, many charities and voluntary organisations are at risk, with little or no working capital, thus anticipating significant cash flow problems.

 “We want our new fund to unlock the power of our community,” explained OCF CEO Jayne Woodley. “This is a time when their services have such potential to provide the essential lifeline so needed by those who are most vulnerable and at risk in our communities.”

How the funding will be distributed is currently being formulated as Kate Walker, OCF’s Marketing Projects Manager, explained to Thame.Net: “We are working hard to pull the details of grants that will be available as soon as we can.  As I am sure you can understand we want to do this right and also ensure that there is a long-term solution as well.

“We are currently working on the details of how the fund will be managed. Information will be released on our website as soon as these are completed. People will be informed by email when the fund is open for applications and anyone who does not normally receive OCF communications, can opt in to receive these emails here.”

The objectives of the fund are to:

•  Help organisations to respond better: grants will help organisations meet new needs appearing as a result of the Coronavirus and help organisations for whom restrictions mean they have to find new ways of meeting existing needs.
• Help organisations to recover stronger: grants will help to ensure organisations can survive if their operations or income are interrupted by the Coronavirus.

The design for operating the fund will be guided by the following:

•  The need to respond quickly and to adjust to a changing situation. Therefore, the fund to include a “light touch” element.
•  The recognition that there will need to be flexibility with regard to milestones and reviews.
•  An assessment of the wider context of needs and resources available. This will include a needs analysis in relation to urgency and importance, plus the evaluation of applications based on their relative levels of impact.
•  The need to be professional and thorough in assessing applications and the use of funds.

Help to scale up efforts to distribute food

The fund will help organisations like SOFEA (South Oxfordshire Food and Education Alliance), who can scale up their efforts to distribute food to vulnerable people across Oxfordshire. It is already working together with existing volunteer hubs, such as Oxford Together and Citizens Advice Banbury.

This means renting additional vans, buying more fuel, cleaning materials and redeploying staff. SOFEA have committed to this even as their cash flow is reaching a critical point. Restrictions on educational activities are reducing SOFEA’s income. The speed with which the fund has been set up means that SOFEA has already received an emergency cash injection of £10,000. CEO Richard Kennell said, “Support from this new fund is vital for us. It enables us to focus on meeting the urgent needs of the crisis and gives us confidence that SOFEA will still be here when the crisis is over.” 

The OCF funds will be pooled with other money being made available, including that from the National Emergencies Trust (NET).