Hampshire misses out on Real Help for Communities grants

Fifty areas around the country were awarded grants ranging from £97,000 to just over £1m – but Hampshire didn’t get a penny.

The money was part of Government’s Real Help for Communities scheme to the 50 areas most at risk of deprivation.

But vital organisations including debt support services, relationship breakdown services, mental health organisations and Citizens Advice Bureaux across Hampshire have missed out.

Meanwhile, Bournemouth received £161,313 in the giveaway, Swindon was given £277,733 and Birmingham scooped a grant of £1,004,620 to distributed to small charities and community groups.

Toni Shaw, of the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Community Fund, said Hampshire has been left to fight the recession alone.

She said: “I was very much expecting to see a slice of the funding to give to needy groups throughout Hampshire and was devastated to read that none of the £15m earmarked to support the voluntary sector cope the recession has been allocated to Hampshire or the Isle of Wight.

“It is more challenging to be poor in an affluent community because the needs of our local vulnerable people are often overshadowed by more visible needs elsewhere.

“We still have people being made redundant, families breaking down and people suffering from mental health issues caused by losing their jobs and homes.

“As one of the largest counties in the country and with two large cities, I would have thought we ranked higher for support.

“It seems Hampshire will just have to help itself through these tough times.”

The programme is funded by the Office of The Third Sector in the Cabinet Office and administered by the Community Development Foundation.

A Cabinet Office spokesman rejected claims that Hampshire had been “snubbed” by the funding, saying the areas earmarked to receive the grants had been decided by a range of factors including the number of people claiming jobseekers’ allowance.

He said: “The Targeted Support Fund deliberately focuses on 50 areas in England that are most at risk of increased deprivation this year. The areas were selected using a range of data, including the highest increases in new jobseekers’ allowance claimants over the last year.

“Other measures were announced by the Government as part of the ‘Real Help Now’ Third Sector Action plan, which apply to all areas including Hampshire.

“This will help the third sector to address the immediate needs of communities throughout England affected by the recession.”