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Commission awards £10 million funding to organisations across Britain.

The Commission today announces the recipients of its Strategic Funding Programme, which will award nearly £10 million to 61 community and voluntary sector organisations across England, Scotland and Wales.

This is in addition to the £4.2m awarded earlier this month to 77 voluntary sector organisations, including law centres, advice bureaux, racial equality councils, disability advice specialists and human rights organisations, as part of Commission’s legal grants funding programme. A further grants programme in the next financial year will see about £1 million given to organisations to support smaller-scale projects.

The Commission’s funding programme, which received over 2,000 applications worth in excess of £500 million, provides project-based funding for up to three years and up to £450,000. Each intended recipient will be made an offer, which will then be subject to a formal agreement.

Previous recipients have used the grant money to fund programmes including helping women suffering violent abuse in Wolverhampton, establishing a specialised support group for black and ethnic minority people with learning difficulties in Cardiff, funding a project coordinator at an International Women’s Centre in Dundee, and launching a programme dedicated to supporting young campaigners in East London.

This year’s recipients provide guidance, advice and advocacy services to help break down discrimination and inequality in areas including education, health and employment.  Funding also supports organisations building good relations, particularly between groups, or in areas, where there are known tensions. 

Grants have been awarded in two priority areas, underpinning the Commission’s three-year strategy: 

• Providing guidance, advice and advocacy services to help support individuals from communities who may experience difficulty in obtaining services that are vital to their life chances, levels of social mobility and central to their rights.
• Good relations, combining not only the reduction of prejudice and segregation, but also the establishment of positive, supportive engagement aimed at fostering increased interaction and understanding between groups and communities that do not ordinarily mix or where particular tensions exist. 

Some of the projects to be awarded provisional grants by the Commission include: 

• Barking and Dagenham Racial Equality Council: to fund work to draw different communities together, supporting interaction and participation within the community. 
• 'Derbyshire Friend’ – Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender (LGB&T) Specialist Support and Advocacy Services: to raise awareness and provide advocacy services to reduce isolation, hate and harassment.  
• Bonny Downs Community Association in London: to help older people with advice, support, training and advocacy. 
• Glasgow Disability Alliance: to recruit and nurture the next generation of disabled leaders in conjunction with Glasgow Centre for Inclusive Living.
• National Youth Theatre of Great Britain: to fund an education programme using drama to explore the issues around young people using knives.
• Living Options Devon: to help test a new, nationally important, deaf-led rural advocacy, information and peer support service. 
• Kick it Out: to fund a leadership programme to increase the diversity within the football industry for coaches and administrative staff.

Baroness Margaret Prosser, deputy Chair of the Equality and Human Rights Commission, said: 'The Commission’s strategic funding programme will help 138 organisations that make a real difference to hundreds of thousands of people. They have both the knowledge and expertise to bring real benefits to their local communities. Through our unique grants programme we can help ensure this good work continues. Support for these organisations is critical if we are to succeed in extending equality and fairness to all people in Britain.'

Find out more and download a list of the awards

Notes to Editors

Section 17 of the Equality Act 2006 allows the Equality and Human Rights Commission to give financial assistance to organisations concerned with promoting equality and diversity, good relations and human rights.

A list of organisations offered funding under the 2009/10 Strategic Funding Programme is available on our website: www.equalityhumanrights.com/grants

An offer will be made to each recipient and will be subject to contract.

The Commission is a statutory body established under the Equality Act 2006, which took over the responsibilities of Commission for Racial Equality, Disability Rights Commission and Equal Opportunities Commission. 

It is the independent advocate for equality and human rights in Britain.  It aims to reduce inequality, eliminate discrimination, strengthen good relations between people, and promote and protect human rights. 

The Commission enforces equality legislation on age, disability, gender, race, religion or belief, sexual orientation or transgender status, and encourages compliance with the Human Rights Act.  It also gives advice and guidance to businesses, the voluntary and public sectors, and to individuals. 

For more information contact the Equality and Human Rights Commission Media Office on 020 3117 0255, out of hours 07767272818.