People across Leicester are being encouraged to start the New Year by taking part in a citywide crowdfunding campaign to help local good causes.
City Mayor Peter Soulsby’s Crowdfund Leicester initiative was launched in late 2017 to support local projects of all sizes by encouraging communities to work together to bring to life new ideas.
The scheme is also supported by the City Mayor’s Community Engagement Fund, which can allocate pledges of up to £10,000 a time to back worthwhile and popular proposals.
With 11 live campaigns currently being run on the Crowdfund Leicester Spacehive site, people are being reminded how they can take part and help boost local projects.
The Spacehive crowdfunding appeals currently running include:
- Active Elders – seeking £11,714 for seated exercise sessions for older and disabled people
- Children’s Eye Health workshops – hoping to raise £12,578 to educate young children on sight loss and the importance of eye health
- Crafty Carers – aiming to raise £1,736 for free craft sessions for unpaid family carers
- Find A Voice – providing a creative space for homeless, isolated and vulnerable people and looking to raise £7,717
- Gorse Hill City Farm access – £6,285 is needed to improve infrastructure, signage and grounds for provide better visitor access
- Leicester Outdoor Pursuits Centre – aiming to raise £34,000 to reconstruct its kayak launch area which is in poor condition
- Nelson Mandela statue – an appeal to raise £88,703 for a life-size statue of the former South African statesman
- Save Hogarth Painting – organisers want to raise £16,625 to retain a painting by the 18th century English artist Hogarth
- Skills for Life – hoping to raise £12,726 to run sessions to help reduce social isolation and improve community cohesion across Spinney Hills, Rushey Mead and Evington
- Stop the Fight and Unite – £11,629 is sought for a multimedia project for young men, aimed at highlighting the consequences of violence
Nearly £150,000 has already crowdfunded five very different campaigns in the city, which attracted 537 backers in total.
They include the Phoenix Access Cinema to provide headsets for people with sight and hearing loss to enjoy the cinema.
The Urban Equestrian Academy’s purchase of a new minibus to take inner-city children to stables around the county has also received funding from the initiative.
Also benefitting have been the first phase of the Little Theatre Centenary Project to extend and modernise its 1920s building, and the Save Goddard Bank campaign to make essential repairs to the Grade II listed bank building in Granby Street.
Community youth brass band The Brass Of The Saff has raised more than £8,000 via the scheme, after the bands organiser Drum and Brass launched an appeal late last year to raise funds for new instruments and uniforms.
The group has now been able to order the first 10 of its new instruments.
City Mayor Peter Soulsby said: “Since the launch of Crowdfund Leicester we’ve seen some fantastic community schemes coming forward, and this is the ideal way for them to seek the funding they need.
“There has been a great response so far, with a range of projects involved in bringing real benefits to people in their communities. I would encourage people and businesses to continue to come forward with ideas.
“In some cases, these appeals can also be offered support from community engagement funding to help bring them to fruition. We’re also making underused parcels of land in the city available for suitable community projects.
“Leicester is a city with a lot of really good grassroots ideas, and Crowdfund Leicester gives the people behind those ideas a way to make them a reality.”
Leicester City Council is partnered with crowdfunding platform organisation Spacehive.
For further information on Crowdfund Leicester, ongoing appeals and how to get involved click here
