supporting, developing and representing community groups,
voluntary organisations, social enterprises and volunteering

Grants awarded

  • All recipients of funding from the Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund in Fife will be listed below


    This table is automatically updated whenever an applicant organisation signs the grant award contract. There may be projects not yet listed below that have been provisionally awarded funds but have not yet completed the legal formalities.


    The project summary detailed below has been created by Fife Voluntary Action to give a broad taste of that project's intentions. It does not form part of our agreement with the relevant award recipient.


    Click on an entry for further information


    Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Year 4 | Year 5

    Organisation Project Awarded
    Anim8s Drug-Related Deaths: Digital/Exhibition Project £11,332
    Summary: Anim8s will engage a group of adults in a creative process culminating in the creation of an exhibition about the impacts of drug-related deaths on people in Fife. The group will consist of young adults and parents, including lone parents with their own substance use issues, and others affected including bereaved family members and parents and carers of drug users. The group will be recruited in collaboration with Clued Up, who offer a range of support services to substance users. Substance users and their families often feel isolated and lonely due to financial and societal pressures. They feel that the intergenerational group of 16 participants will benefit enormously from peer support, and that their mental health and wellbeing will be enhanced by the opportunity to share ideas, thoughts and feelings with others in a comfortable, warm and safe environment. They will also benefit from working together to create a meaningful, creative and rewarding output. Project structure: 1. Discussions over 4 weeks to agree and develop themes established with a focus on drug-related deaths. 2. 4 weeks of sessions will explore how visual imagery can communicate complex ideas in a direct but creative way. 3. 2 days for photography/design of exhibition. 4. Edit 5. Exhibition at venue(s) TBC
    Areas supported: Kirkcaldy
    Arden House Projects Arden House: Additional Tuesday Group £14,610
    Summary: The Year 2 MH+W grant enabled the Charity to further address the above by extending its services and establishing a second group of service users on Tuesdays. This has proved to be a great success, attracting 8 - 10 regular attendees who have gelled well and thoroughly enjoy each other’s company, as well as the activities organised for them. They will continue the service for the whole of 2024, with volunteers playing an increased role, thus reducing the requirement for additional paid staff resources. No new staff would be recruited, the requirements would continue to be met by extending the hours of existing "bank" staff, which would also have a direct impact on those individuals' ability to cope with the cost-of-living crisis.
    Areas supported: Levenmouth
    Auchmuty & Dovecot Tenants & Residents Association Glenrothes Community Crisis Support worker Project £34,460
    Summary: Auchmuty and Dovecot Tenant and Residents Association, deliver a range of crisis support to the Glenrothes adults who are experiencing poor mental health & well-being. They can see that the local community are facing escalating problems with poor mental health & well-being, an outcome of loneliness, poverty, social isolation, unemployment, disability, discrimination, trauma, and Post Natal Depression. They aim to deliver early intervention and prevention activities to the harder to reach adult community. To enable them to deliver this project, they would like to employ a coordinator to deliver additional activities that would include co-ordinating closer connections with support agencies to enable them to signpost adults appropriately, develop ‘see me’ friendships and mentoring support groups that offer 1-1 support, mindfulness sessions and enjoyable group activities within a safe place and with a person-centred approach and encourage independency and recovery. Using the national approach of time, space, and compassion, they will make support available daily to people experiencing a mental health and well-being crisis, and their carers. They aim to ensure everyone receives good quality mental health and well-being support and are signposted to specialist services where appropriate to help prevent suicide. Evidence gathered from the service users, volunteers, and partners, highlighted the success of t current initiatives. They are supported by volunteers experiencing poor mental health & well-being, and they have reported the opportunity to support others made a massive improvement to their mental health & wellbeing. This funding will enable them to action the high in demand priority project for the benefit of the Glenrothes adult community.
    Areas supported: Glenrothes
    Auchtermuchty Community Centre (SCIO) Auchtermuchty Men's Group £9,675
    Summary: The Mens Group is a volunteer run, friendly, welcoming space for men to meet on a weekly basis. This fully inclusive group is open to all men over 18. It has around 14 members, the youngest being 32 and the oldest 78. Up to 10 attend each week; the group plans to build its numbers further. The group counteracts the isolation some men experience, offering a free, accessible space to allow the men to form new friendships. It provides companionship, and a feeling of belonging in the community. Attendees can talk about their mental health and connect with others who understand what they are going through. The men chat over some nourishing food e.g. soup. Some members bring homemade cakes, allowing them to feel they are contributing. The group aims to help advance personal development by building relationship skills, leadership skills, emotional awareness, self-esteem, general life skills and healing. The leaders provide moral support and signposting to additional resources, e.g. debt management and counselling services. The members can learn new skills and enjoy a range of activities, within the Centre and beyond. They use modelmaking and other activities to improve hand and finger mobility, coordination and strength. These activities strengthen fine motor skills and help stimulate the brain to improve muscle function. The group will use the Centre sports hall every two weeks for indoor curling, darts and light exercise. A monthly trip away from the Centre offers new horizons and a breath of fresh air.
    Areas supported: North East Fife
    Benarty Community Forum Wellbeing at the Hub £14,500
    Summary: They identified high numbers of people in the community living alone, also struggling with mental wellbeing and loneliness. Many are struggling with the cost of living and high utility costs. The aim is to encourage/invite them to attend sessions which they intend to hold twice a week and over a cup of tea and some food, meet new people and take part in organised activities in warm, friendly, welcoming surroundings. They will begin by trying a few different sessions and will then engage with those who attend to see what they would like to come along to and do their best to make it happen. Funding will employ an Activities Co-ordinator to engage with the local community and the most vulnerable, hard to reach individuals. The Forum aims to use this funding if secured, to establish a series of weekly sessions which will encourage people to partake in activities in the Community Shop. Alongside this, they will work with Fife Council's local Welfare Support Assistant who is on hand to offer a range of advice such as benefit take-up, employment support and general advice. They will also have basic IT classes on offer. There will be opportunities for other agencies, such as Fife Law Centre, NHS Fife Health Promotion and Cosy Kingdom to have regular inputs. They will encourage local people with skills/hobbies such as cooking, knitting etc to have a regular input. They will also encourage the volunteers to undertake the Food Champions course so they can encourage healthier eating and eating on a budget. Organisations such as the Benefits Agency, The Rights Healthy eating organisations will give talks and advise how to make healthy meals cheaply. They are presently looking at starting up a Repair Club where people bring things in for repair and local volunteers can repair them free or low cost. The Activities Co-ordinator will be responsible for developing and delivering these to help the most vulnerable.
    Areas supported: Cowdenbeath & Lochgelly
    Brag Enterprises Ltd Together Levenmouth Bingo Buddies & Digital Cafe £38,840
    Summary: This project has 2 strands. 1st is a replication of what was delivered in years 1 & 2 with a few tweaks from the learning. A weekly game of bingo that has 3 sessions. Facilitated by a dedicated member of staff and a volunteer each session allows for up to 30 people and as well as 2 games of bingo, they receive drinks & cakes, and their travel is also included. The Monday session will be dedicated to the care homes as they no longer have funding for entertainment like this and often don't leave the home at all. Wednesdays & Thursdays are for the public and are mostly attended by members of the foodbank. The hub is on the High St in Leven making it an ideal location for the people of Levenmouth as it has good bus links and specialist taxis and buses for wheelchair users can stop right outside. The second strand has changed this year from that of years 1 and 2. The advisory service was great but a little over-saturated in the area and so this year they will trial digital cafe. On speaking to Fife Council local committee members and some local councillors, a gap was identified for the expertise of someone to help people with forms and applications or even with how to use facetime on a laptop. Many households do not have any laptops or PCs and are digitally isolated. The party room will be used for 2 hours every week and having the YMCA deliver training and hands-on help to people that need it. These sessions will be used to provide feedback to the council about the local digital needs in the area. The Hub staff are now trained in how to help people access the benefits calculators etc too so the sessions will also be used for that. They will provide 4 laptops that can be used at any one time.
    Areas supported: Levenmouth
    Breathe Easy Fife Come Together 4 Well-Being £8,831
    Summary: This project will deliver and develop what they have started over the past 2 years and the priority is to make the sessions more accessible by opening a new group in Glenrothes which will save members having to travel to Kirkcaldy and allow those unable to travel far to have a group on their doorstep. This will be the 5th group in Fife. The funding will deliver: 1. exercise sessions - the fitness coach with training in lung health will do a class at each group prior to the usual monthly meetings. 2. Singing has been a great way to boost well-being and makes a significant difference to those coping with poor mental health so aim to develop this activity to more regular sessions as they have now gathered a bank of people who will take these sessions. 3. Volunteer expenses - previous year funding has helped retain new volunteers. 4. The phone befriending is a lifeline for the members too ill to attend meetings so the funding to keep this going is a huge investment in tackling poor mental health and identifying those at risk of self-harm. 5. Social opportunities - Carers are often forgotten about but they have huge limitations put on their lives, so being able to enjoy a social event with entertainment, speakers etc allows them to spend some 'normal' time with their cared-for person but also meet up with others who are in a caring role, so they plan to have a Well-Being day bringing all the groups together. 6. They plan to organise 2 outdoor events at the new Park Golf course.
    Areas supported: Glenrothes | Kirkcaldy | Levenmouth | North East Fife | South West Fife
    Buckhaven Baptist Church Cosy Cafe £6,000
    Summary: The funding will build on and develop the existing services to be more responsive the needs of their users, and to be able to support them to build connection to their community and improve their mental health and wellbeing. The cafe has run since 2016 and caters for around 25-30 local people every week many of whom have significant addiction, mental health and other issues. The volunteers offer a welcoming space for all and actively work with those who attend to support and sign-post them to benefits, health and other support services. They also have regular visits from The Well, Furniture Plus, Fife Council CLD and the Corra Foundation who engage with service users to identify issues and barriers they may be facing. The Food Larder also 25-30 local people each week providing a bag of food worth around £30 to those using the service for a charge of £1. This service is open to everyone in the community and provides a significant support to those struggling to afford to pay their heating and food bills. The funding will allow them to build on this and develop the service to include weekly activities, add the provision of vouchers and train the volunteers and participants to have a greater understanding of mental health issues. They are working in partnership with the Corra Foundation to identify the kinds of activities that participants would like to see. Activities identified so far include monthly quizzes, arts and crafts, storytelling, live music, and other suggestions. They hope offering these activities will create a greater sense of community and allow to increase the numbers attending and the impact on isolation and mental health in the community. They will also host a Mental Health First Aid course for volunteers and participants to begin to foster a greater understanding of mental health issues amongst the community.
    Areas supported: Levenmouth
    Charis Foundation Charis Counselling £9,938
    Summary: This is a pilot for a new service that will help to expand and improve their counselling service to better meet the growing and changing needs of the community. They will offer one off solution focussed sessions by a qualified experienced counsellor to those who find themselves in crisis, feeling desperate or suicidal, or are self-harming, suffering from high level anxiety and are at risk. Once assessed for risk and if safe to proceed, this brief but effective intervention will enable clients to focus on what they need and empower and equip them with strategies to help them in moving forward. They anticipate that this will be a useful process for both those who come to them for help during a crisis and for those on the waiting list. The grant will enable them to recruit and retain more volunteer counsellors, increasing the number to 8. The grant will also enable them to pay for external training to update and upskill all of their volunteers on issues such as suicide prevention, self-harm and especially trauma. This would enable the counsellors to be able to help the growing number of clients who come to them exhibiting the effects of adverse childhood experiences and evidence of trauma.
    Areas supported: Glenrothes | Kirkcaldy | North East Fife
    Clued Up Project Making it work for Families (Activities, group work, Resdiential) £10,448
    Summary: MIWF is a partnership project between Clued Up, Fife Gingerbread, CARF and FIRST, providing whole family support for vulnerable families affected by substance use. They provide proactive, holistic and flexible support working with families in an asset-based way to enable all family members to reduce barriers and progress individuals on their own journey to reach their full potential. The staff team consists of 6 workers who provide key worker one to one support, group work programmes, teatime clubs, family learning, and family activities. A youth forum and adult forum is established to create an environment where the families can coproduce with the workers on what activities will be on offer and have their say about local delivery. The programme will include day trip activities, and group work programmes over the duration of the funding period including a residential experience. The activities will include the outdoors and trips focusing on mindfulness, wellbeing, team building and building relationships, and fun. This will allow families to come together to provide peer support to each other, build on and increase family relationships, increase their confidence and self-esteem, increase awareness of the outdoor, and increase physical and emotional health and wellbeing.
    Areas supported: Kirkcaldy | Levenmouth
    Corrie centre senior citizens social club Better together £6,820
    Summary: This project will continue to deliver 48 weekly sessions which will run from during 2024 into 2025. These sessions will continue to offer people so many positives, improve their mental health and their general sense of wellbeing. Participants said the sessions were something to look forward to, a chance to meet up with friends and share memories, problems, feel welcomed and valued as well as supported by others. The group now face the impact of the cost-of-living crisis; many who attend the group are pensionable age and rely on state pension and savings to meet the increase in bills across all sectors, including utilities to food and transport. The participants will receive support with transport to the groups, activities, refreshments, and outings.
    Areas supported: Cowdenbeath & Lochgelly
    Crossroads Fife Mental Health & Wellbeing Champion £14,799
    Summary: This project will continue the role of a Mental Health and Wellbeing Champion who will be there to support staff and be a point of contact, helping to support and signpost individual services users and their carers through staff. To alleviate this pressure staff will be given training and direction in signposting both colleagues and service users/carers. This will be expanded into the befriending groups that are run throughout Fife. This year they will continue with: 10 hours per week specifically dedicated to Mental Health & Wellbeing in the care and befriending services. Access Mental Health & Wellbeing training for newly recruited volunteers and staff. Champion to continue to deliver training to all support workers, volunteers and any newly recruited volunteers & staff. Regular updates for staff/volunteers. Build relationships with other organisations to signpost services through the third sector partnership, including the newly allocated Carers Strategy funding.
    Areas supported: Cowdenbeath & Lochgelly | Glenrothes | Kirkcaldy | Levenmouth | North East Fife
    Cruse Scotland Bereavement Support Bereavement support for adults in Fife £8,600
    Summary: The team of community-based volunteers can support bereaved people experiencing a range of mental health issues, trauma and distress and are also trained in identifying people at risk of suicide. This project will support adults struggling to cope with grief to build resilience and improve mental health and wellbeing. There will be 6 monthly community-based support groups through the year for 60 bereaved adults experiencing loneliness and social isolation in Kirkcaldy, Glenrothes, Methil, Dunfermline, Cupar and a Walking Group across Fife. 50 Early support sessions for 30 adults in the first 6 months of bereavement. Sessions take place online in a one-to-one setting with an experienced volunteer who is trained in identifying risk of suicide and trauma. 250 One to one support sessions. The trained volunteers work with 40 adults to help them understand their emotions, address issues having a detrimental effect on their lives and gain confidence to achieve personal goals. A free helpline & webchat service giving 400 people immediate support and information. By providing initial contact through the helpline, they will issue information packs, which contain self-help information for bereaved people as well as guidance on how to access further support from Cruse Scotland and relevant partner agencies. The helpline can also signpost bereaved people to further advice and information who are worried about the impact of cost-of-living crisis on paying for funerals or household bills.
    Areas supported: Dunfermline | Glenrothes | Kirkcaldy | Levenmouth
    Curnie Clubs Curnie Clubs Flourish with Nature £47,443
    Summary: They have learned a lot from doing year one and two - although these were very successful, they are in a position to enhance the provision. Provision will be delivered in three parts. Part one Introduction to working with nature. Two to four weeks of learning about mindfulness, meditation, sit spots and forest surfing. This prepares the client for the activities from the outset. Part two main program Part two will now feel longer as clients are ready to engage and start to feel the benefits of working with nature. This helps all at home to understand any changes the clients make on the program and also passes skills on to children and partners. This is called 'home share'. The program has been further developed into a rolling program of events and activities and part two will last for twelve weeks. Part three Learning from previous years shows that clients are more ready to face their own fears, explore greater expectations of self and methods of maintaining newfound motivations. This requires a short period of 1-1 work, normally over a four-week period. Total provision can be up to twenty weeks. Support may not end there as they have fantastic relations with other specialist services that can provide support outside their skill sets. To enhance provision in phase three there is a requirement to move more on to employment or volunteering. Wellness can be short lived and if clients are just going back to the same environment and life circumstances, they can lapse back into old ways. This program is designed to bring resilience to both the family and the client with a view to the whole family having the tools to stop that slide back. The theory is that they would have a client who would learn skills and tools to support better mental health and can then use learning from the program to support better connections and understanding within the household and have the whole family all working together in a more informed way.
    Areas supported: Cowdenbeath & Lochgelly | Dunfermline | Glenrothes | Kirkcaldy | Levenmouth | North East Fife
    Deafblind Scotland Don't Worry Be Happy £10,002
    Summary: The project will continue to be delivered by guide/communicators G/Cs. They will provide accessible phone/home-based one-to-one sessions including mental health brief interventions, advice, and support. The project will proactively reach out to and prioritise members affected by the cost-of-living crisis. More specialist G/C staff will be upskilled in mental health brief interventions and a larger cohort in Psychological First Aid training, giving them the skills to provide initial help/support to someone who may be developing a mental health/substance use problem, experiencing poor mental health or a crisis. They will be provided with further training to help understand the principles of promoting mental health/wellbeing and how to communicate mental health/wellbeing messages effectively. The training will be delivered by a range of mental health improvement professionals. G/Cs are SSSC registered support workers with specialist communication skills. They ensure information is accessible to deafblind people in their preferred communication methods. Participants will be provided with evidence-based self-care resources - good mood food recipe cards, accessible/safe physical health exercise instruction sheets, good sleep guides and mindfulness/relaxation CDs. Resources will be available in bespoke accessible formats (Braille/moon/audio CDs). The project will be able to better support deafblind people to take charge of improving their mental health whilst equipping staff with skills to reach out to deafblind people in distress.
    Areas supported: Cowdenbeath & Lochgelly | Dunfermline | Glenrothes | Kirkcaldy | Levenmouth | North East Fife | South West Fife
    Dunnikier Park Community Golf Community Roll-Out Expansion: Phase 2 £15,470
    Summary: Year 1 launched Park Golf, a new game to Scotland aimed at enhancing mental health and wellbeing. Year 2 increased the number of groups and people playing FGT’s 2019 course, including Step by Step (a bereavement support group) and residents from 8 Care Homes who joined the Care Home League, with 4 monthly events held in 2023. Feedback shows Park Golf enhances mental health and wellbeing, reduces isolation, builds confidence, frees the mind, and releases people from their immediate pressures. This year they are expanding across Fife so more people, the vast majority of whom wouldn’t normally play sport, can benefit too. Further community roll-out is planned in Year 3, with greater focus on supporting mental health and raising self-esteem. They are also partnering with Craigtoun Park and Levenmouth Tourism Association. Both organisations see the benefit of introducing Park Golf (with no-barrier access) to community groups as a way of promoting physical and mental health and wellbeing. Between March and October 2024, they will run free weekly sessions, encouraging participants to be active and have fun outdoors - take the game to local communities (e.g. sheltered housing complexes) offering residents the chance to play Park Golf on their doorstep in a grass area where they stay - work with partners to extend barrier-free access to Park Golf.
    Areas supported: Kirkcaldy | Levenmouth | North East Fife
    East Neuk Lighthouse Women's Wellbeing Group £5,556
    Summary: The project plans to gather a group of ladies who live in the East Neuk of Fife and are known to Lighthouse through groups that are run. A common thread in their lives is that they are mothers, grandmothers or kinship carers who are struggling to make ends meet financially while caring for children. Their busy caring roles are often combined with other challenges such as ill-health, a child with special needs or a family member suffering from mental health problems/an addiction. The limited opportunities to access free activities in addition to the burden on their time mean that these ladies are often isolated and desperate for a listening ear and a kind, caring environment to relax and make friends. The aims of the group are to provide a cosy, sociable space where these ladies can gather once a week for some time out, just for themselves, where they can talk without judgement or interruption. They will have the opportunity to chat about concerns and share tips while eating a wholesome meal prepared just for them. Then over a cup of tea or coffee they can learn and practise a new skill together. New skills included over the weeks will be agreed by the group and will include a range of activities. One strand of activities will be crafty as this group of ladies enjoy seeing the crafts at events, they bring their children along to and are keen to have the opportunity to try them for themselves. There will be opportunities to make gifts and cards for family members and friends - reducing financial stress, while having fun. Another strand will include learning some new recipes and being encouraged to try them out at home.
    Areas supported: North East Fife
    Equal Voice Equal Voice Elevate £39,792
    Summary: Elevate is a social outreach project and to date has successfully engaged (330) vulnerable people offering support and guidance through weekly organised events. The project brings people together to address the impact of social isolation. the cost-of-living crisis, poor mental health, loneliness, and poverty to improve overall health and wellbeing, this funding will allow the continuation of the 2 part-time posts (18 hours) to continue and extend the successful work with vulnerable adults who have enduring mental health, a learning/physical disability or chronic illness. This year they aim to develop a year 3 action plan, seek to engage, and offer support to 120 clients who are struggling with their mental health and wellbeing, work with clients to support them with health and wellbeing plans, organise 50 events/forums in Fife, aimed at supporting individuals with their mental health and wellbeing. Events will include 10 x mindfulness sessions 10 x coping with anxiety, 3 x healthy eating on a budget, 6 x cookery classes, 4 x how to keep your house warm and reduce bills, 3 x dancing movements to release stress, community safety and keeping safe online x 4, 10 x activities (including outdoor) to bring people together considering client needs and requirements. Engage a further five volunteers to support the delivery of the Elevate project. Increase by 50% the support to the number of clients who have enduring mental health.
    Areas supported: Glenrothes | Kirkcaldy | Levenmouth
    Express Group Fife Tayport Express Group £5,000
    Summary: Express Group Fife currently run twelve weekly groups across Fife from St Andrews to Inverkeithing, they6 are now including a group in the Tay Bridgehead area. It runs from 9.30 until 1.00pm, participants receive a simple breakfast of toast and tea or coffee. Refreshments are available throughout the duration of the group and finish with a simple cooked lunch. In between participants decide the activities they wish to take part in. Some of the groups like playing bingo, others don't. Chatting with other participants or staff and volunteers, arts and crafts or board games are also available, but the key principle is that those attending decide what they want to do. The caseworker will also be available to help individuals with issues they may have, such as problems with banks, the council or other statutory agencies and will refer on for more specialist help if required. Volunteers are available to help with the group.
    Areas supported: North East Fife
    Fairway Fife Community Re-engagement Project £11,000
    Summary: This a community re-engagement and mental health recovery project for adults, aged 16+, with disabilities. They are working with a marginalised group who are isolated and disengaged from people and activities within their local community. Their needs are at an all-time high and the provision serving those needs is severely diminished. The project facilitates regular access to structured social and physical activity which improves mental, physical, and emotional wellbeing. The staff and volunteers will be working with small groups of 4 adults with disabilities per day and they will be doing these 5 days per week. The staff and volunteers will be mentoring the individuals with disabilities out in the local community, helping them connect with people and services. Depending on the interests of the group, they may go shopping, out for lunch, see a movie at the cinema, go for a coffee at a local cafe or any other activity relevant to their wants and needs. They also have a range of planned activities for the groups arranged with their partners. These include arts & crafts, costal walks, team sports, cooking skills and various outdoor activities at Lochore Meadows.
    Areas supported: Dunfermline
    Falling UP Together (SCIO) Falling UP Living in Art £50,000
    Summary: Falling UP Living in Art will continue their project from the previous 2 years. Mental health will be improved through artistic teamworking to support participants to be better at being themselves. Social & artistic collaborations within UDW will support recovery lifestyles through personal expression, personal development & improved social resilience. A new outdoor studio at Calais Wood will be added to the Fire Station Creative studio, strengthening the therapeutic impact of facilitator & peer-mentoring through UDW. Due to demand, they will operate 6 days weekly to deliver 1000 sessions to 200 participants. Sessions will embed positive reinforcement to build confidence, self-esteem & enable participants to develop a wide range of coping skills, which can prevent suicidal thoughts. Poor mental health will be tackled by working in communal projects designed to be happy moments that reduce loneliness, suicidal ideation, & develop positive behaviours to mitigate the cost-of-living-crisis. They will structure pathway-projects to assist participants to feel better about themselves as they connect with their community. Projects will encourage achievable ambitions & creative growth within supported planning & working practices in the community. They will support participants to co-develop projects with local organisations to improve their wellbeing, giving positivity in times of crisis. There will be 12 public indoor/outdoor Falling UP exhibitions for participants to achieve cultural & social recognition. Seeing their own created success in the community will grow positive mental wellbeing. In year 3, they will develop a response process that links to referrals by medical professionals, offering the possibility of contributing early intervention & reduced risk for participants.
    Areas supported: Dunfermline
    Families Outside Supporting Fife families affected by imprisonment £9,397
    Summary: People with family members in prison endure difficult feelings of shock, confusion, grief, and painful readjustment: experiences that become more complicated and challenging as their loved ones move through the criminal justice system, from arrest to investigation to charge to prosecution to trial to conviction to imprisonment and, in time, to release. Families Outside work with families in Fife to address these issues, helping to mitigate some of imprisonment's most damaging long-term impacts on mental health and wellbeing. The Regional Family Support Coordinator (RFSC) provides tailored one-to-one support - including practical and emotional advice, guidance, and advocacy. There will be access to local groupwork activities and valuable peer support networks. Service users can access support for problems relating to substance misuse, addiction, domestic abuse, etc.
    Areas supported: Cowdenbeath & Lochgelly | Dunfermline | Glenrothes | Kirkcaldy | Levenmouth | North East Fife | South West Fife
    FEAT Trading Community Interest Company Silverburn Staycations £10,500
    Summary: Silverburn Park Campsite offers a tranquil location for people to get away from the daily grind and relax in beautiful surroundings with woodland trails and access to the beach, benefiting mental health and wellbeing. They will provide exclusive access to the glamping pods during 4 weekdays per week in 2024-2025 to other local organisations supporting disadvantaged individuals and families. Each organisation will receive a share of vouchers to disburse and will allocate according to their knowledge of their service users and who would gain the maximum benefit from this opportunity. They will target those who are struggling with life's challenges and pressures of the cost-of-living crisis. They provide a home-cooked meal from the Park's Cafe. Beneficiaries will also learn more about the wider work, volunteering opportunities, free workshops/training sessions linked to FEAT's National Lottery Heritage Fund programme running alongside the Flax Mill restoration.
    Areas supported: Levenmouth
    Fife Centre for Equalities Companion Support £15,000
    Summary: With this grant FCE will continue to employ an Operational Officer part-time as a coordinator for the Companion Support volunteers. The ME60+ project funded by the lottery has come to an end in September 2023, but they continue to provide to support to over 150 minority ethnic older people across Fife, through both the Companion Support volunteers who provide social activities and regular Get Togethers that are designed to reduce isolation. Participants also access FCE support in linking up to local services and making use of adjustments or communication support as required. The Operational Officer continues to deliver the ongoing strategy of increasing linkage with local services and increasing/diversifying participant's social support networks. The continued programme of activity involves social get togethers/gatherings in community cafes and/or other 'warm places' across Fife, thus introducing residents to their local hubs, ideally on their doorstep or in their locality, and removing barriers for participation.
    Areas supported: Cowdenbeath & Lochgelly | Dunfermline | Glenrothes | Kirkcaldy | Levenmouth | North East Fife | South West Fife
    Fife Employment Access Trust Canine Mindfulness £8,172
    Summary: This is a mindfulness-based stress resilience courses combining the natural beauty of the Park, and Gus, an accredited therapet. There is something about dogs that makes us want to connect with them. They are friendly, live in the moment and are joyful when they see us. Perhaps dogs can teach us something about how to live our own lives? Gus, an Australian Labradoodle and registered Therapet and his owner Dougie, a mindfulness teacher, will encourage participants to explore their lives more fully in a mindful way. Over a period of six weeks, they will explore the similarities and differences between us and our canine friends, how to deal with stress, how to relax and make connections with ourselves and others. There is no need to be a dog owner or know anything about dogs to participate. This programme is educational in nature and is not intended to be a treatment for mental health problems. By the end of the course people will have a better understanding of the effects of stress on mind and body & have experience of exercises that will enable them to become more resilient to it. This course is suitable for people who may have lost self-confidence in doing things such as meeting people or feel overwhelmed with the stress of everyday living. It will run for small groups of up to 6 people. Each session is approx. 2 hours. Over a period of six weeks the course will cover the brain, stress, emotions, thoughts, gratitude and being kind to oneself.
    Areas supported: Dunfermline | Glenrothes | Levenmouth
    Fife Islamic Centre (Methil) Senior citizens club £15,000
    Summary: The objective is to bring isolated senior citizens to gather so they can socialise meet people from different backgrounds, as because of their age they don’t get out much to socialise, they may be house bound or even disabled, older women because of their age, language barrier and the majority of them cannot drive and most of all they do not want to go out alone themself so they feel lonely and depressed which effects their health and wellbeing, with this project they will be brought to a place where they can enjoy friendly engagement with others and get a bight to eat. They aim to take most senior citizens away for a day trip to the Highlands region in the summer where most of them have never been so they can see most interesting and beautiful places in Scotland.
    Areas supported: Glenrothes | Kirkcaldy | Levenmouth
    Friends of Craigtoun I can Learn £12,480
    Summary: The work will tackle disadvantages faced by those with Additional Support Needs (ASN) and positively target change in the disadvantages. Typically, the beneficiaries will be the families of and those who have left school after 11 years of standard learning/care support, having ceased abruptly at the same age as those without a learning disability and with no further public support plans. This project will address each of these needs providing training, evidencing additional learning capacity for those with ASN and particularly a learning disability, by developing Cooking, Catering and Hospitality skills to accredit non-formal learning, enabling practical voluntary outcomes by serving the community. Supervised by the Park Manager the project will engage 3 staff to deliver the project and a range of volunteers, however they anticipate that the project will engage support from carers from the referral organisations who will generally bring the beneficiaries to the venue but are committed to helping the individual beneficiaries improve their capacity. The Development Officer in this project has a role of coordinating those volunteers and those carers/staff from peer organisations will be charged with tasks that they can cope with, given the wide range of cooking catering and hospitality roles that can be involved. The actual engagement will carry that range, however, with or without carers/peer organisations staff. The focus of learning and development for the beneficiaries will start with cooking and catering activities. The project will engage those participants with positive learning/training/work experience and work placement both with them and potentially other organisations with prospects leading to possible employment, within the capacity of each person.
    Areas supported: North East Fife
    Furniture Plus Ltd Health and Wellbeing Woodwork Workshops £10,000
    Summary: This is the continuation of the Health and Wellbeing Woodwork Workshops at Furniture Plus for members of the local community take part in. With the help of Communities Health and Wellbeing Fund they have provided attendees with free use of the wood workshop on the premises, along with providing tutor’s / facilitators to teach them basic woodwork skills and wood turning. Individuals work with two tutors and up to five participants each day which allows the tutors to spend plenty time with those taking part. The materials used in the workshop is reclaimed wood from pallets, bed slats, and scrap wood, or items of furniture that need refurbished or repaired thus preventing landfill and thus also emphasising the importance or re-use to the attendees. All items that have been made or restored by participants were for them to take for their own use with no charge. There will be nine eight-week sessions, with three courses per week, running the year. This is for those who would like to build confidence, reduce isolation, and improve mental health.
    Areas supported: Cowdenbeath & Lochgelly | Dunfermline | Glenrothes | Kirkcaldy | Levenmouth | North East Fife | South West Fife
    Gallatown Community Initiative Recycling & Upcycling Workshop £12,500
    Summary: The Recycling & Upcycling Workshop is being developed to support those who have been struggling with their mental health and wellbeing. The project itself will be aimed at adults who reside in the Gallatown and Kirkcaldy east area and will offer woodwork and crafts activities with a focus on reusing/recycling/repurposing materials. The group will run twice a week, offering a space for local community members to come together to learn or share any creative/building skills and meet other people with similar interests as them, helping to reduce social isolation, improve mental health and wellbeing and connect people with the wider community. In delivering this project, they hope to create a safe space for people to come together, receive peer support, engage in positive activities as well as feeling valued as they build and create things for themselves and their homes, helping to reduce social isolation and promote social inclusion. They also aim to work towards lending out tools when appropriate, to those who have been trained and supported to be confident and competent enough to enable and empower them to fix things from their home.
    Areas supported: Kirkcaldy
    Greener Kirkcaldy Let's Grow Together £9,998
    Summary: The Let’s Grow Together will continue with their approach to their volunteer work, transitioning from staff-run to volunteer-led sessions. Focusing on tackling social inclusion, recruiting and supporting older volunteers and those with additional support needs, mental or physical health conditions or suffering from social isolation or socio-economic disadvantage. The project will improve mental health and wellbeing by facilitating good quality volunteering opportunities, bringing people together, tackling social isolation and loneliness, connecting people with the outdoors and supporting people to get active, gain skills, get more involved in their community and be empowered to access additional support. They will deliver: - Weekly volunteer sessions for 30 volunteers, trialling different days and times to reach people who will most benefit - Training and support for volunteers, to develop their knowledge, skills and confidence and empower them to take on more responsibility. Raise awareness of, and help people to access, other support provisions, for example the community meals, community fridge, energy advice service and SAMH’s mental health drop-in cafe. 3 volunteer-led community events, inviting people of all ages to connect locally, inspiring new people to get involved, and showcasing the garden and volunteer achievements. The project will use a highly inclusive and participatory approach. It will be led by the volunteers, with staff acting as facilitators and providing training and support. They facilitate peer support and informal training between volunteers. A buddy system will partner new and experienced volunteers and encourage them to share learning.
    Areas supported: Kirkcaldy
    Grow West Fife SCIO Happier Communities in Tough Times £17,900
    Summary: They will continue to offer the field-to-fork veg growing and cooking lessons, a new community shed to share house and garden repair skills and community lunches where all can reconnect, make friends, learn new low-cost dishes, and share tasty free meals. This will help the volunteers feel less isolated and more resilient, mentally, and financially. They host a weekly cooking workshops at the garden and share the volunteer-grown veg with those most impacted. They also offer six, fun, food road shows cooking workshops and tasting sessions - to introduce more people to delicious, cheaper dishes. It will be a cost-free way to explore nutritious meals and learn to cook them. The veg will be shared along with info on accessing free food and fun social events at the garden. The physical and mental wellbeing benefits of community growing are well-known, but the money-saving benefits can also ease the additional stress of hardship. Volunteers, including some in crisis and at risk of suicide, have said the garden sessions have made a great difference to their mental wellbeing.
    Areas supported: South West Fife
    Homelands Trust-Fife Paxton Connexions £14,947
    Summary: Homelands has a unique community resource in the fully accessible Paxton Centre, which has a large activity space/cafe area, a further large activity room and several smaller rooms. This proposal is to pilot a proactive approach to reaching lonely older people, people with a disability (and their carers), and people living with dementia. The project will develop low or no-cost activities in the Paxton centre which help people to feel connected and involved in shared group activities. There is strong evidence that taking part in group activities encourages people to make friendships, tackle isolation and build social bonds. This has a protective effect on mental health. The project will develop and evaluate a programme of activities that engender fun, learning and friendships. The activities will be designed around what people say they want, but some initial ideas include crafting; simple seated exercises; and wellbeing activities. They believe that sharing food is great for reducing isolation, and so on 2 days they will provide a simple and nutritious community lunch of homemade soups and snacks. This will be on a donate-if-you-can basis, to reduce any financial barriers. The pilot will be led by a part-time Activities Coordinator, aided by a team of 7 volunteers. The volunteers will provide the community lunch (the volunteers with relevant qualifications keen to get involved.) They will also help to support the activities. The Activities Coordinator will have an outreach role: getting to know local older people and people with a disability, identifying what would interest them and organising taster sessions. The Activities Coordinator will develop networks of helpful local people with relevant skills in e.g. crafting, seated exercise, and also connect with relevant local groups- such as Dementia groups and churches - to help reach people who would benefit most from the project.
    Areas supported: Levenmouth | North East Fife
    Home-Start East Fife Home-Start East Fife £10,330
    Summary: Home-Start East Fife will offer 1-1 support from staff and/or volunteer on a fortnightly/weekly basis for parents with young children who are socially and/or geographically isolated. The support will be a mixture of phone calls, texts, face to face visits and assisting to attend groups. The focus will be on assisting parents to become more socially connected within their community to enable sustainable long-term reduction in feelings of isolation and loneliness which often will lead to low mood, depression, poor confidence and self-esteem. This is an expansion of the existing support for families they will be offering support to 15 families who have identified as socially and/or geographically isolated, feeling low/struggling with mental health.
    Areas supported: North East Fife
    Kennoway Community Shed Kennoway Community Shed Connections £13,750
    Summary: The Shed is providing 4 sessions of indoor activities a week which supports people to have a socially connected space with access to food, warmth, and activities. The Shed also provides access to outdoor spaces and maximises the benefit of gardening and fresh air to enhance people’s mental health and support them to have a sense of wellbeing and purpose. As well as group raised beds people can have their own allotment. Visiting the Shed on a regular basis allows local people to feel they can leave their homes and be socially and emotionally connected. Over 100 people come to the Shed on a weekly basis, and all say they feel safe in the environment, they enjoy talking to and meeting with their peers as well as having access to simple food and refreshments. The STAND group has demonstrated the benefits of introducing the arts into the activity spaces and the year 3 grant will be used to employ sessional artists to support their group and the other "dementia friendly" groups that meet on a Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday.
    Areas supported: Glenrothes | Levenmouth | North East Fife
    Kindred Advocacy Kindred Fife EPAtS (Early Positive Approaches to Support) £9,510
    Summary: Kindred Fife provide advocacy, emotional support, counselling (where required) and early intervention training for parents, Early Positive Approaches to Support (EPAtS) across Fife so they can reduce the impact of the caring role, support parents of children with complex needs, disabilities, to feel less isolated, be better informed and be more confident in advocating for their child. Kindreds experienced advocates will support Fife families with financial advice, Income maximisation and support at a time when the cost of living is already disproportionally affecting them, and their mental health due to the extra daily living costs associated with bringing up a child with complex needs. Kindred Fife will run a EPAtS workshop (over 8 weeks) supporting 8 families. Sessions will take place in person. Referrals will come from self-referrals, education, social work, health, paediatricians, and the CAMHS LD team.
    Areas supported: Cowdenbeath & Lochgelly | Dunfermline | Glenrothes | Kirkcaldy
    KIngdom Abuse Survivors Project (KASP) Young Adults Counselling Service £28,000
    Summary: KASP has 2 qualified and experienced counsellors delivering 1:1 therapeutic counselling and support to young adults between the ages of 16 and 25 who live in Fife and who have experienced childhood sexual abuse. In addition, and due to the increased numbers of young adults being referred (or referring themselves) they have allocated 2 volunteer counsellors to support this service. This funding will continue to fast track young adults into the service and enable them to get the support when they need it rather than waiting on a lengthy waiting list. One to one counselling and support will include crisis support and psychoeducation enabling clients to reduce /eliminate the symptoms of trauma caused by CSA. In addition, they will provide food vouchers to those who are in desperate need. Once counselling ends clients are offered a befriending service via KASP which can in turn help young adults to connect with others and start to become more integrated into their communities. They will be allocated a dedicated befriender who will agree contact (times/where/when/how long) and how their weekly sessions are used to support them.
    Areas supported: Cowdenbeath & Lochgelly | Dunfermline | Glenrothes | Kirkcaldy | Levenmouth | North East Fife | South West Fife
    Later Life Choices Glenrothes Let's Talk £12,320
    Summary: The project is aimed at supporting older people who are struggling with the Cost-of-Living Crisis and mental health issues which have had a detrimental impact on the older population. Many older people are unable to get out and engage in social activity and/or have caring responsibilities. This has a marked impact on their physical and mental health. As a direct result of the cost-of-living crisis there has been an increased number of older people diagnosed with depression and anxiety/stress in addition to considering suicide. The project will provide therapeutic Counselling to older people living in Central Fife. The project will support older people (age 65+) who are unable to access or have not been offered counselling via their GP. A unique aspect of this project would be to offer in-house or Zoom counselling for those older people who struggle to leave their home due to physical, psychological, or environmental restrictions. The project will provide trained Counsellors who will take a person-centred approach, utilising therapeutic modalities relevant to everyone. Each client will be offered between 6 and 12 sessions. Total sessions delivered will be 210. In relation to the cost-of-living Crisis, counselling can help people in a variety of ways: - 1. Provide a fresh perspective and a better understanding of emotions 2. Improve mood, self-esteem, and resilience 3. Help individuals to better understand their condition 4. Explore ways to improve current situation 5. Explore coping strategies and goal setting to better manage mental health conditions and suicidal ideation 6. Signposting for additional help and support (financial, practical and or emotional) they feel that providing older people with an opportunity to access counselling that is free at the point of contact can only help to improve their mental health. This can lead to increased motivation and resilience thereby encouraging them to seek available help and access additional financial and practical support, where relevant.
    Areas supported: Glenrothes | Kirkcaldy | Levenmouth
    Lucky Ewe Lucky Ewe Recovery and Renewal £12,563
    Summary: This project will continue to support people with mental health issues at the farm. This outdoor work with dairy sheep will help the interns to reduce anxiety, develop self-confidence and learn to work in small teams. The work they lead includes cleaning animal pens with shovels, the barrowing of muck, replenishing water and feeding the sheep: all these group activities are beneficial to mental health and wellbeing. The staff also lead and direct vegetable-growing activities, craft activities, for example, carding wool from their own fleeces.
    Areas supported: Glenrothes | Levenmouth | North East Fife
    Methilhill Community Children's Initiative Adult Volunteering Project £12,539
    Summary: This is a new adult volunteering project which will help adults in the community overcome some of the issues that they are dealing with and improve their wellbeing. The adult volunteers will be involved in running a community cafe, helping with childcare, DIY, gardening, hospitality, arts & crafts and more. The project will run two days each week with 30-40 adults participating. The experience will give disadvantaged people something meaningful to be a part of, make them feel good about themselves, improve their mental/physical health, and benefit the entire community in the process. It will also provide access to activity and training that gains accreditation, builds new skills, develops new interests, and makes social connections. All of which will support the individual through a difficult time and create opportunities for them that leads to something positive.
    Areas supported: Levenmouth
    North East Fife Community Hub Companionship Lunch £8,965
    Summary: This is a weekly lunch which is aimed at inclusivity and reduction of loneliness. Reaching out to the most isolated in the community as the cost-of-living crises bites those on the margins are being squeezed financially and socially and this project would aim to alleviate this in a small way. Weekly lunches and activities in the Hub Cafe are aimed at reducing poverty stress provision of warm space and food at no cost. They will signpost to appropriate support agencies such Samaritans, they will leaflet and encourage introductions through Social Services, Health Visitors, Student Support, Gingerbread, Homestart, Families First, Nurseries etc. They aim to provide this on a Friday and aim initially to provide 20 meals per week during this pilot phase.
    Areas supported: North East Fife
    Options in Life New day of service £13,200
    Summary: The funding will directly benefit approximately 40 adults with learning disabilities - a further increase of 10 on the previous year. People with learning disabilities, who are currently suffering in isolation without provision will gain access to a weekly service where they will take part in fully supported, fun, educational, fulfilling group social activity. The activity range is extensive and suits all interests and wellbeing needs, also designed to instil confidence, and develop skills which further improve lives and opportunities outside the programme. Each activity runs a full day, transport is provided and the group participating receives all the support they need from a team of highly trained staff who ensure everyone gets the assistance they need, their emotional wellbeing is supported, and they are always safe. Some example activities include bee keeping, off-road cycling, rock climbing, nature walks, working with exotic animals, horticulture, arts & crafts, kayaking, tank driving, cookery classes and many more. In 2024 they will run even more activity in the new centre which will allow them to support even more adults with learning disabilities than they did in year 1 & 2 of the CMHW funding, reducing their isolation and improving their mental health through various group workshops and social events.
    Areas supported: Glenrothes | Levenmouth | North East Fife
    Over Rankeilour Walled Garden Therapeutic Gardening Programme £4,760
    Summary: The aim is to provide a safe and supportive therapeutic environment in which to support those in need for whatever reason, but with a focus on mental health and wellbeing. Over the last year, the Fife Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Grant has enabled them to employ a volunteer coordinator. Establishing this role has helped recruit, engage and encourage a growing number of volunteers from the target groups and to provide more regular and better structured therapeutic gardening sessions. They will continue to fund this role for two, four-hour sessions per week. With the expansion of the activities supported by this grant they have been able to accept referrals from the NHS via social prescribing, from the Community Mental Health Team and from Stratheden Hospital as well as from local third sector groups. They have welcomed families and children to the garden and have hosted visiting groups, including patients from Stratheden Hospital, students from Elmwood College and from a primary school. The volunteers also take advantage of the produce grown within the garden, with all of the fruit and vegetables grown this year going to the volunteers themselves. With so much of the groundwork laid down, further funding from the grant would allow them to continue to expand upon this work, increasing the number of regular volunteers and bringing in the local community wherever they can. In this way they hope to improve community connections alongside the mental health and wellbeing of attendees during this time of financial hardship.
    Areas supported: North East Fife
    Pen Pals Pen Pals Peer Support Group £8,569
    Summary: Pen Pals provides an informal support network within the local LGBTQIA+ community. The aim is to lessen isolation and loneliness, and offer early intervention towards better mental health, by providing welcoming spaces to LGBT+ people (particularly queer and trans people). They aim to deliver more regular, accessible, and inclusive events and workshops in order to benefit more of the community in Kirkcaldy and Fife. At present Pen Pals runs once-monthly peer support groups at a central Kirkcaldy venue, alongside ad-hoc peer-led events such as film nights, co-working spaces, wellbeing gatherings and a pop-up space at Fife Pride. Now they aim to widen the scope of the project to a more structured weekly program of meetings, workshops, activities, and events. Each month: - a meeting where members could socialise and engage in informal peer support (15-30 people); - a facilitated workshop with a focus on activities designed to support wellbeing (15-30 people); - an online co-working space (unlimited spaces); - a user-led planning meeting, where members shape the program (approx. 15 people). As well as one-off outings or seasonal celebrations. They will improve accessibility by booking wheelchair accessible spaces, and providing equipment for members with sensory needs; - mitigate the impact of the cost-of-living crisis on the members by providing safe and comfortable spaces to meet at no cost to attendees; - provide a discretionary travel fund, which also improves accessibility for anyone unable to use public transport for any reason; - provide training and opportunities for the members to build confidence and gain skills and experience that they can use in other parts of their lives, e.g. in employment. This program has been developed to be consistent and reliable, and to allow for meaningful engagement for members who struggle with their mental or physical health, financially, or with loneliness and isolation. They aim to empower the members to support themselves and each other.
    Areas supported: Kirkcaldy
    Pilgrim Care Enhanced Parish Nurse Services for the Older Person in St Andrews £40,140
    Summary: This project is a continuation of a funded project from years 1 and 2, increasing the Parish Nursing Assistant’s hours and recruiting volunteers. This will allow the PN to focus on improving mental health and wellbeing of lonely, isolated elderly residents in the St Andrews area while being mindful of the negative impact of the cost of living and of the economic landscape on residents who suffer from the impact of hidden poverty. Walking group now including lunch - enabling peer support, socialising, and nurturing friendships. By extending the hours further, the afternoon can be an activities time. Friday walking group will be developed. In poor weather a museum or other place of interest will be visited. They reminisce and then share food, enabling continuation of physical and social benefits. Cinema club, this has been piloted and is a great success, the group chooses the film, and refreshments are served. They aim to develop a second group in early evening which can be a lonely time for some. This will be developed on the request of current clients and allow more people to join and benefit. Gentle exercises, armchair, body bingo, strength and balance followed by lunch and games. They use the Wellness Flower with the group and offering access to some additional games. Dementia group will be further developed allowing individuals to choose weekly activities. Pay as you can is being introduced to reduce the financial burden without creating a barrier. Volunteer training will allow personalised support by a 'buddy' who will be aware of the client's personal situation and condition and will tailor support to allow full participation from preparing the client to leave their home, accompanying them, and returning them safely in their own vehicle. Relationships are formed based on trust and familiarity where volunteers befriend clients and become enablers. Volunteers provide a way in which clients can be taken out for a short drive, or an outing for a coffee according to their own preferences. Pivotal to the above is the removal of the barrier which transportation presents.
    Areas supported: North East Fife
    PLANT part of Tayport Community Trust PLANT to Plate £12,820
    Summary: PLANT grows and distributes vegetables at no cost to Tayport’s residents. PLANT will expand food preparation to support those who are at risk of financial hardship and social isolation. Tayport has small pockets of serious deprivation, including single households and families on fixed incomes. They are more likely to feel the effects of the cost-of-living crisis and be at greater risk of social isolation and poor mental health. The Project will use Tayport’s Community Garden (including the recently built pizza oven) and other premises to introduce people to growing and preparing their own food. Participants will develop skills, confidence and resilience in the face of the cost-of-living crisis and increasing climate change anxiety. Participants will come together to learn and share cookery skills and develop an interest in growing and preparing their own food. Participants will meet weekly over 2024 with an experienced facilitator who will help them harvest, forage and prepare food. Food preparation will be practical and kept simple to ensure that participants are not constrained by lack of special kitchen equipment and ingredients, or poor basic skills. Participants will contribute to a recipe book that can be used by others, reflecting their experiences in being alienated from the food preparation process (inspiration from Jack Munroe). This will enable Participants to develop their confidence in growing and cooking food on a low budget. They will have the opportunity to attend other workshops, such as First Aid and Health and Safety. As well as using produce from the Garden, PLANT will approach local providers for excess vegetables and purchase food, but only when necessary. At least once a month, participants will visit the Community Garden to harvest any vegetables, herbs etc required, then prepare a dish around these, inviting up to 15 people to come along and share the food.
    Areas supported: North East Fife
    Relationships Scotland- couple counselling Fife Come and talk about it £13,530
    Summary: Following successful delivery of 300 sessions in year 2, they will be increasing their capacity. To meet this current and increasing demand they have recruited more volunteer counsellors. Counselling will be delivered face to face across Fife, with online counselling available if requested, by a mixture of volunteer counsellors (7) as well as paid counsellors (12). They will be offering 400 free counselling sessions to people from a disadvantaged socio-economic background who struggle with poor mental health caused by social isolation exacerbated by the cost-of-living crisis. They will take around 45 referrals, an estimated 30 individuals and 15 couples from other agencies and will work closely together with support workers from those agencies to ensure engagement.
    Areas supported: Dunfermline | Kirkcaldy | North East Fife
    Relationships Scotland Tayside and Fife Connecting Families - RelScot £12,705
    Summary: This project aims to enhance people's connectedness, to reduce their sense of isolation and to improve their mental health and resilience. To tackle these issues, which affect the connectedness, mental health, and sense of coping in families, they are offering this service to 45 people, including kinship carers, during Year 3. They will be offered a maximum of 180 sessions including Mediation, Contact, Therapy and Counselling. All services will enhance beneficiaries' mental wellbeing due to reducing their distress and isolation and reconnecting them with significant others. In mediation they meet individuals to help them resolve fallouts that causes great distress to them. Mediation reduces conflict, resolves recurring problems, improves communication, enables parties to gain negotiation and conflict resolution skills, improves relationships and trust, increases resilience and well-being, and enables parties to reach workable arrangements for the future. In counselling, they support young adults (16-18yo) with difficulties arising from high conflict, separation, or difficult family transitions. They offer a confidential and safe space where a counsellor will help them overcome or manage better their difficulties and improve their well-being. Supported contact appointments would also be offered as part of the package where needed, to ease these pressures on the parents and building/re-building connections. Sessions can also involve older siblings (16+) building relationships with their younger siblings who may live elsewhere.
    Areas supported: Dunfermline | Glenrothes | Kirkcaldy | North East Fife
    Safe Space VOUNTEER EXPENSES AND TRAINING £8,000
    Summary: This service is based on recruiting volunteers for counselling and groupwork to work with adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse. Volunteers commit to a year, although many stay longer and Safe Space commits to providing specialist training and to provide paid external trauma supervision. They provide a 4-day training in trauma workshop which all volunteers must do. Some of the training planned is eating disorders, self-injury, parenting, OCD and addiction. This allows volunteers who are counselling students at universities, to develop the specialist skills needed to help survivors to overcome their difficulties to be able to develop skills and strategies to move forward with their lives. They also pay for external trauma supervision to ensure independent quality monitoring, as well as monthly group supervision.
    Areas supported: Dunfermline | North East Fife | South West Fife
    Scotland Yard Adventure Centre Supporting parents/carers of disabled children in Fife £12,400
    Summary: A Family Support Play Team Leader (FSPTL) runs the family support service in Fife supporting approximately 150 parents/carers of disabled children in Fife. Continuing to form peer support networks. Provide parents/carers with respite opportunities, where they can focus on their own wellbeing. Provide parents/carers with practical advice on navigating health, education, and social services. Increase parents/carers knowledge and understanding of other services available to them, so that they have long-term support plans that are sustainable and not reliant on any one organisation. Alleviate stress among parents/carers before they reach breaking point. At the drop-in play sessions each weekend (5 hours per session, twice a weekend for 50 weeks of the year) the FSPTL will be on hand to answer questions from parents/carers. Where a need for ongoing support is identified, the FSPTL will regularly meet with parents/carers (either online or in person) and help them create personal wellbeing plans, so they can track progress towards specific goals. Additionally, they will run activities such as informational coffee mornings addressing popular concerns and short-term counselling.
    Areas supported: Kirkcaldy
    Seal Dunfermline This is Me £9,907
    Summary: The This is Me project has come from the young people themselves who have expressed an interest in developing their creative skills, particularly in photography. As a result, they aim to engage eight vulnerable young people who attend Seal Dunfermline in eight individual projects designed to meet their social and emotional needs. Based around the theme of ‘This is Me’ the project will involve them working both individually and in small groups towards the creation of a series of bespoke digital/photographic works. A total of 24 half-day, individually and 3 full-day group sessions will take place over one year during which they will be encouraged to tell their own stories, explore, and present their sense of identity to their peers, friends, and families in a safe and supportive environment. They will create self-portraits in the broadest possible use of the term, combining traditional drawing, painting, and making with photography and digital art, to create unique personal artworks. This will include studio photography where they will learn about portraiture. The young people have taken a direct role in creating a vision for the project.
    Areas supported: Cowdenbeath & Lochgelly | Dunfermline | South West Fife
    Sporting Memories Foundation Scotland Sporting Memories Fife £7,000
    Summary: This project will continue to support the growth and expansion of the local weekly Sporting Memories Clubs in Fife. They will use the hook of sport, through a mix of reminiscence, social activities and taking part in inclusive physical activities to connect older people who share their interest and passion for sport. They are opening one new Community Club at Inverkeithing High School. A weekly community club consists of the 'first half' being sporting reminiscence and cognitively stimulating games supported by memorabilia and resources defined by the participant's sporting interests and preferences. At half time they will be provide refreshments. The 'second half' of the weekly club will facilitates physical activity with a range of activities and sports including boccia, target games and a range of balance and strength exercises. All activities will be inclusive and within the limits of the individuals within the weekly club. They have five current clubs taking place weekly at Kirkcaldy RFC, St Columba's Glenrothes, Gilvenbank Community Sports Hub in Kirkcaldy, Abbeyview Bowling Club, Dunfermline and East Fife. The beneficiaries will be isolated older people 50+ living with multiple conditions such as dementia, depression, loneliness and increasingly limited mobility.
    Areas supported: Dunfermline | Glenrothes | Kirkcaldy | Levenmouth | South West Fife
    St Andrews Environmental Network Ltd Beach Wheelchairs onwards and upwards £10,600
    Summary: This application is to provide funding to employ a seasonal member of staff to run the Beach Wheelchair project for 2024. The service provided free hire of Beach Wheelchairs 4 days a week from April to September. They currently have 6 chairs and 1 walker which can be used for either the morning or afternoon session. In 2023 they also required a hoist to assist in the transfer of wheelchair users form their chair to a beach wheelchair. For the start of the season, they will also have an additional piece of equipment, the nomad which the persons remain in their own wheelchair which opens up the experience for those who are unable to transfer to another chair. The member of staff would deliver the service when there are no volunteers available, provide support for the volunteers and assist with the marketing of the project. The service they provide not only benefits the wheelchair user but also those accompanying the user, as it means a whole family can enjoy the beach experience at no cost.
    Areas supported: North East Fife
    St. Andrews Botanic Garden Planting for your 'Piece' £9,800
    Summary: Planting for your Piece is a fortnightly gardening and social club with structured 2 hour sessions for adults (approx. 15 per session) with mental health conditions referred through local mental health support groups, services and social prescribing schemes in North East Fife. The project provides positive psychological and physical benefits for participants where they come together and connect, offer mutual support and share experiences with others, whilst learning new skills and benefitting from being hands on with nature in a peaceful outdoor setting. Activities provide enjoyable ways to undertake physical exercise to improve psychological health. A dedicated allotment patch provides an invaluable place for them to have ownership of creating opportunities to build confidence and self-esteem. Participants learn how to grow and cook with their crops as they prepare simple nutritional recipes to make at home. Sessions include time for socialising with a cuppa aimed to tackle social isolation and loneliness and support wellbeing.
    Areas supported: North East Fife
    STAND STAND Dementia Friendly Meeting Centre Spaces £14,500
    Summary: Year 1 and 2 funding has supported the establishment of a weekly Dementia Friendly Meeting Centre Space which meets in the Kinghorn Community Centre. They are expanding the support for people at who are worried about dementia, going through the process of being tested for dementia, or are living with a diagnosis of mild to moderate dementia and their families and friends. The focus of the spaces is to connect people to each other in the hope their shared lived experiences will enhance their understanding of the condition and to develop healthy coping mechanisms. They provide peer support, practical information, and signposting to services. The group members benefit from being involved in therapeutic activities which boost their confidence, self- esteem, maintain a balanced approach to their mental health, enhance their skill base and helps them to live as well as possible with a very debilitating and terminal condition. This will include a range of therapeutic mediums such as art and music tutors.
    Areas supported: Cowdenbeath & Lochgelly | Dunfermline | Kirkcaldy | South West Fife
    SUNSHINE CLUB (operating as, and hereafter referred to as, The Sunshine Kitchen) Tuesday sessions £11,000
    Summary: The Sunshine Kitchen provides volunteer work opportunities for young adults with lifelong neurological conditions. The young people are involved in all aspects of seasonal food production, from growing produce in their own garden to cooking and baking with it in their kitchen. Regularly attending food markets and community events across Fife, they sell food from their stalls, and provide catering. The Sunshine Kitchen recognises the potential of its team members, an under-served population in terms of quality work opportunities available to them. They have much to contribute and need the chance to show what they can achieve. This project, which currently provides fully-supported places for 25 young people, seeks to empower young adults in achieving their goals, particularly at a time when full-time education has come to an end and they may be severely impacted both emotionally and financially by social isolation. Through providing the appropriate amount of consistent professional support, the members of the team attain a high level of independence and confidence in all that they do, and a sense of pride in their working abilities.
    Areas supported: Glenrothes
    SupportED (brand name of the Linda Tremble Foundation)) Peer support for people in Fife affected by Eating Disorder £14,223
    Summary: SupportED will now offer Peer support groups in St Andrews and Kirkcaldy for people with an eating disorder, meeting monthly (venue TBC) and they expect an average attendance of 10 people who will attend free of charge. The groups will be facilitated by locally recruited volunteers. There is an established referral route with Fife Health Board and other organisations including St Andrews University. The groups will be promoted in the local community in GP practices, colleges and universities and other community facilities. A pilot of in-person Befriending for people with an ED or caring for someone with an ED. The befriending service matches people with an ED and/or carers with a volunteer Befriender who can provide emotional support during periods of need. It is especially beneficial to people unable to access in-person services due to their location or social anxiety. When appropriate, the volunteer signposts the service user to local support services. Many of their volunteer group facilitators and Befrienders have lived experience of ED. SupportED will help address this need in Fife by providing a safe space for people with an ED to share their experiences, reduce their sense of isolation and receive the encouragement they need to regain their self-confidence and the resilience to challenge their illness. Through Befriending, carers can share the impact of their caring role and address their own sense of isolation and helplessness.
    Areas supported: Kirkcaldy | North East Fife
    SWAN SWAN Places: Fife £6,987
    Summary: This project will continue to run autistic-led groups for 12 months to bring together autistic women and non-binary people across Fife for regular support and peer-support groups, outings and activities reducing isolation and improving wellbeing. This project recruits, trains and supports local autistic volunteers, to run the group, pay local community venues to hold the meetups, and organise activities across the region in response to identified local autistic community need. In response to what the existing group participants and volunteers have said, they will build on and expand the current project by building capacity within the group to become more autonomous, identifying and organising the activities they want and need to support their own wellbeing and develop their connection to community. This includes more access to outdoors activities including physical activity, connecting with other local organisations and visits to local sites.
    Areas supported: Glenrothes | Kirkcaldy | Levenmouth
    Taymara New Perspectives in Life £12,621
    Summary: This project will provide participants with river trips over our operating stretch of the 20 navigable miles of the river Tay and land-based excursions, to open the unusual experiences involved in discovering the maritime/marine, environmental/wildlife and built resources bordering the banks of the Tay and its hinterland (being over the horizon from sea level). Not many know the range from dolphins to seals to beavers, ospreys and sea eagles, land-based flora & fauna, (not least in Tentsmuir National Nature Reserve), and the heritage, contemporary and built environment in and bordering the Tay. This project aims to provide new perspectives in life, opening new experiences and interests to focus participants attention, engagement and development - on new challenges and interests serving in: - Ill-health, those affected by severe ill-health, commonly cancer or an equivalent life-threatening illness, automatically face enormous stress which has been compounded by withdrawal/disruptions in treatment. They provide learning experiences particularly for the learning disabled who are significantly disadvantaged by the fact that statutory public support for learning is only financed until the end of secondary education, despite the fact that a learning disability automatically means that their capacity is not fulfilled by that time and where the withdrawal of 5 days a week of professional learning support, has left those adults, and their carers/parents, with a lifetime of incremental challenges and stress.
    Areas supported: North East Fife
    Tayport Community Trust Tayport Community Health and Wellbeing 2024 £14,290
    Summary: Tayport Community Health and Wellbeing Project is continuing to provide support to local people to reduce social isolation, to run free social, educational and physical activities, and to offer holistic support to improve physical and mental health and wellbeing. The programme aims to offer free, weekly social and physical activities for people in the local area. The programme of activities will run weekly throughout the year, offering a range of different activities. The sessions will vary in length, from 1 -3 hours. Activities will be volunteer led. Wellbeing activities will ben things such as mindfulness and relaxation, yoga, pilates, arts and crafts, social groups, as well as family events aimed at bringing together the whole community to nurture intergenerational relationships and strengthen informal community support networks all of which helps nurture peoples mental health and wellbeing.
    Areas supported: North East Fife
    The Breastfeeding Network The Breastfeeding Network Fife £9,559
    Summary: This project will train 12 new volunteers and set up a peer support group for new parents in Cowdenbeath. They have chosen this location to help reduce social isolation and offer support around mental wellbeing for new mums in an area of Fife with high levels of deprivation and low breastfeeding rates. The training is accredited so volunteers will receive a recognised qualification. They will prioritise places on the training for women living in the Cowdenbeath area. Volunteers will receive ongoing support through regular supervision and ongoing learning. Travel expenses will be covered. Once training is complete, they will employ a local coordinator (5 hours/week) to support the volunteers, set up the group and manage associated admin tasks. Other local organisations will come and talk in the groups, on subjects such as mental wellbeing, infant nutrition, income maximisation and general parenting support. Bringing others to the group enables other agencies to form better relationships with parents and to provide additional support.
    Areas supported: Cowdenbeath & Lochgelly
    The Central Park Community Trust Adult Programmes Development Officer £12,000
    Summary: Building on the success of year 1 and 2 programmes such as Walking Football, Ladies Programme, Talk Tactics, and Men's football, they aim to grow these programmes and introduce new ones with an emphasis on affordability for users, particularly those who struggle with the cost of living, while extolling the benefits of activity on physical and mental health. Recognising support that users may require, the project is to recruit an Adult Programmes Development Officer who would be tasked with developing and expanding the provision so that adults in the area will continue to have improved mental health and wellbeing due to increased access to physical activity. With their partner, Andy's Man Club, a mental health charity, they will be developing a mutual referral system between the two organisations where they will provide sessions for them to stimulate physical and mental health while being able to signpost the Club to participants across the programmes. An Adult Programmes Development Officer has been funded to develop the successful programmes but also to engage with other organisations and partners to develop new adult programmes with a view to developing sustainable programmes which will carry on beyond the existing funding available from the Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund.
    Areas supported: Cowdenbeath & Lochgelly
    The Ecology Centre Resilient Roots Supported Volunteering £21,652
    Summary: The resilient roots supported volunteering programme has been funded during year 1 and 2. Year 1 and 2 was very successful and allowed them to support multiple adults with additional support needs. In year 3 they look to build on their success by continuing and developing the supported volunteering offering. Year 3 will focus on how the volunteers can progress post year 3. A number of supported volunteers may be ready for mainstream volunteering or volunteer placements at other organizations. Some may progress onto the OFP project, offering FOLA 4 qualifications and work placements. They seek other opportunities through FVA and Fife council employability teams. They will also be seeking alternative funding to continue supported volunteering programme for those volunteers who continue to need high levels of support and for new supported volunteers in the community. Like all work at The Ecology Centre, the group operates with a person-centred approach. Supported Volunteers are involved in project and activity planning and individual interests and passions are always explored. The focus of Resilient Roots is on improving health and wellbeing through - social connection within the group (including a sit-down cooked lunch for each session). -meaningful and useful physical activity to contribute to the management of the site (such as woodland management, community garden, path and pond maintenance) -meaningful and useful activity to contribute to the enterprise activities (e.g. woodcraft, produce preserving, making things from natural materials) -therapeutic outdoor activities (such as mindfulness, nature connection activities and nature-based reflection) -individual progression with supported volunteers/to mainstream volunteering/into employability project Year 3 Location: The Ecology Centre Number of volunteers supported: 8 - 10 Number of sessions: 38 (weekly during term-time from April 2024 - March 2025)
    Areas supported: Kirkcaldy
    The Friendship Cabin The Friendship Cabin - A Centre for Wellness Year 3 £17,400
    Summary: They will continue, expand and improve the level of service Monday to Thursday specifically addressing the cost-of-living crisis by changing to a donations-based model, ensuring equity over the 4 days, 1 of these sessions being funded through the CMHWF. Therefore, serving members in a more consistent and equitable way. They will focus on improving mental health and wellbeing for all sessions as they have been on the Monday session last year. They will achieve this by incorporating new activities e.g. mindfulness, suicide awareness. They will expand access to physical activity, information on diet and nutrition, learning opportunities through guest speakers and an array of other activities that bring people together reducing loneliness and social isolation. Some examples of weekly activities are - curling, bean bag and ball games, cricket, table tennis, singing, line dancing, basketball, drumming, dancing and chair yoga, and more cerebral activities such as quizzes, conversation, dominoes and other board games plus the interactive touchscreen table. They will arrange for sessions on budgeting and money management and already signpost members to the Food Bank with whom they have links. They will be working with a range of community groups and services to address the outcomes some examples are Inspirational Therapies, Glenrothes Food Bank, Shery’s creations, Crossroads Fife, St Ninians Church, Carleton Primary, Screen Memories, Pitteuchar Ladies Group, Employability at Triage, Music in hospitals to provide a comprehensive and community linked service. The current capacity of the service is 80 spaces across 4 days currently serving 45 members and 15 volunteers, which there is scope to increase.
    Areas supported: Glenrothes
    The Mindful Partnership Minding Fife £23,595
    Summary: Minding Fife is a continuing project which began in Year 1 (2022). In Year 3 they aim to build effectiveness of the training sessions and workshops in Mindfulness and Self Compassion beyond the 3 areas of Central Fife. (Glenrothes, Kirkcaldy and Levenmouth) delivering throughout Fife. In Year 3 they will focus on specific needs and concerns within communities supporting communities and individuals, in group training, whose mental and physical health and self-care, has been impacted more by the cost-of-living crisis. Training will also be aimed at women, those with disabilities in various forms, chronic pain, and health conditions and addiction recovery. The programmes will build awareness and self-compassion - evidence based qualities known to improve quality of life, meaningfulness, and satisfaction. They will encourage participation through introductory outreach workshops, through word of mouth, by making contact and connections with groups and organisations already known in Fife Carers/Befriending, single parent’s groups, women's groups, men's groups, Fife Refugee Council, community workers, GP surgeries and mental health workers to spread awareness of the project. They will promote and offer introductory training and practice sessions in Mindfulness and Healing Relaxation, connecting with well-known and widely used community spaces and groups. They will begin new introductory sessions across Fife, to include new programmes for vulnerable women in transitional life stages, programmes for men delivered by male facilitator, new progs for working with chronic pain and health conditions using experience/results in Year 2. BODY OF TRAINING 300 hrs of training in Year 3, as 6 week 8 week, full day, weekend and retreat formats. New programmes West, East and Central (rural). Already established Year 1 and 2 groups will transition to more self-supporting phase with fortnightly/monthly input from senior trainers.
    Areas supported: Cowdenbeath & Lochgelly | Dunfermline | Glenrothes | Kirkcaldy | Levenmouth | North East Fife | South West Fife
    The Muirhead Outreach Project Ltd MOP Community hub with counselling and wellbeing services £14,300
    Summary: The community hub provides a warm space, a space for 'cuppa & chat', community pantry and access to counselling. They also provide wellbeing sessions for the parents they work with. They are opening a hub next door to their current office to give them the space to meet demand and provide the additional services that the families require. They can support a larger number of people within a community hub and their current services are continuing. The hub will be beneficial to the community’s mental well-being, increase their confidence, improve family relationships, give them a voice in the community, increase their skills and knowledge and allow them to have more positive experiences.
    Areas supported: Glenrothes
    The Pars Foundation Keep Kicking On £12,936
    Summary: This is a continuation of the Walk and Talk project which supports improved physical and mental health and wellbeing amongst adults with poor physical and / or mental health and wellbeing. Walk and Talk provides a lifeline for adults who are struggling with their mental health and wellbeing and who may be feeling isolated or lonely. The project features weekly walk and talk sessions alongside social activities and volunteering opportunities. Each week, the mental health officer leads guided walks from various locations in Dunfermline and the surrounding villages. The project has been running for a year through CMHWB funding and has proven to be both very popular and impactful, new funding would enable them to sustain current delivery, add an additional weekly walk and develop further social activities to support people to come together and connect / re-connect. They anticipate being able to support 80 vulnerable and isolated adults who are struggling with their mental; health and wellbeing through this funding, plus to support the involvement, training, and development of 5 new volunteers. The project provides a safe, warm and inclusive atmosphere which encourages people to get out of the house and be more physically and socially active both key drivers in improved mental health and wellbeing.
    Areas supported: Dunfermline
    The Pars Foundation WALK AND TALK £14,300
    Summary: The Keep Kicking On project will continue, which is a sports-based, early intervention suicide prevention project supporting young men aged 16-25 with mental health issues in Dunfermline. They established a pilot project last year because of the alarming increase in the levels of suicide amongst men in the community and to tackle the negative stigma and barriers that some men face with regards to seeking help for their mental health. This has been very successful but feedback from the group suggests they need to put on more than one session per week and offer extra activities. Participants will participate in weekly 5-a-side football with their peers as well as benefit from various workshops and social activities. They will deliver 2 x weekly sessions across a 50-week period and will promote sessions via social media channels and community partners. Poor mental health is a big problem in the community and significant mental health inequalities exist in Dunfermline. The project brings together young men who share the same interest in sport and have similar struggles and helps improve their mental health and wellbeing, empower them to re-connect with society and build positive relationships and support networks and to grow and improve together, whilst also providing participants with a range of effective coping strategies to deal with stress, anxiety and setbacks and an improved ability to spot warning signs amongst themselves and peers.
    Areas supported: Dunfermline
    The Village Cafe-Ceres Community Cafe Good Companions Lunch Club £9,270
    Summary: The Good Companions Lunch Club is continuing, particularly for those in the village and surrounding areas who are isolated, live alone and whose family, if they have any, do not live locally. They proactively encourage those who are recently bereaved to come along also. The lunch club provides homemade soup, toasties, or sandwiches along with a tea and coffee and a sweet treat, all home baked. In addition, in the past year they have organised for children from the local school and nursery to attend intergenerational sessions. They themed the school children's visit as 'school days' when the elderly talked about what school was like in their day and the children compared to what they are currently doing showing them their iPad and talking about subjects covered. This was such a great success that the school then invited the Good Companions to attend their talent show and they ended up staying most of the afternoon. They will continue this with the Good Companions shortly attending the harvest festival at the school. They also organised an outing to Falkland Palace and Gardens with lunch in a local restaurant. With some of them rarely having the opportunity to leave the village, this was very much enjoyed by all. This year they are planning a Christmas trip.
    Areas supported: North East Fife
    Thistle Foundation Self-Management Skills for Better Mental Health & Wellbeing £31,307
    Summary: They will support 88 people living with long-term health conditions (LTC) to live a life free of isolation and loneliness, improving their Mental Health. The Self-Management programme will be delivered by a FTE Advanced Practitioner and a FTE Practitioner. The service supports mental wellbeing and prevention within local communities via 1:1 support: acknowledging health conditions & struggles; identify best hopes; raise awareness of strengths; prepare for group activities; persistently engage those least likely to access support. They offer a first appointment within 1 week of referral & have an engagement rate of 80% attending initial appointment. Group based support: 10-week LMC (2 per year) helps to understand stress, pacing, sleep management & exercise; supporting transformative changes to better manage life Connecting to resources: financial, other mental health support (via partners) or, Thistle peer-led activities to address difficulties that co-exist with LTCs. Peer development: training people who want to share their valuable life experience & expertise Learning from their experience during 2023, they will focus the face-to-face work on Airlie and Methilhaven whilst expanding the hybrid remote service in Kennoway and geographically isolated communities.
    Areas supported: Levenmouth | North East Fife | South West Fife
    Youth 1st B: a Sports Leader £16,479
    Summary: The B: a Sports Leader programme is an expansion of the current B: a leader programme, which is a 4-week training course designed to build on young people’s skills in leadership. From the delivery of B: a Leader, feedback from participants has been that they would like to utilise their newfound skills and establish themselves as Young Volunteers within their setting. The B: a Sports Leader programme is designed to suit the needs of young people aged 16-25 years. Within a 6-week training programme structured to focus on team building and leadership development, participants will be equipped with the knowledge and tools necessary to plan and evaluate successful sports sessions to be delivered to children within their local community. The content of the training aligns with the "5 ways to wellbeing", considering the mental health benefits of physical activity, emphasising skills such as problem solving, communication, motivation, and planning. This approach not only builds confidence and self-esteem but also promotes a sense of empowerment within the participants. Each training group consists of a maximum of 10 young people, engaging in 6 training sessions. Two of these sessions will be facilitated by Active Schools, providing insights into delivering physical activities and sports sessions to children. To eliminate barriers stemming from the cost-of-living crisis, they will reimburse participants for their travel expenses related to attending training and delivery sessions. Additionally, each participant will receive a voucher to cover mobile phone data expenses, reducing social isolation and ensuring ongoing connectivity with their peers. In total, they aim to provide this opportunity to 20 young people who will not only benefit from the training but also acquire certificates of participation from Youth 1st and Active Schools, as well as attaining a Dynamic Youth Award (SCQF Level 3), a valuable addition to their CVs as they seek future employment opportunities.
    Areas supported: Glenrothes | North East Fife
This page was last updated in April 2024.
Suggest an update/report an error/enquire about this page