St Michael le Belfrey Church (known as The Belfrey) is a city-centre church based next to York Minster, serving our city and region. Our £1 million Post-Pandemic Fund was set up in 2021 to aid the recovery of the community of York as it emerges from the pandemic. We began our Social Transformation Programme in order to strategically allocate money from this Fund, by giving grants to other charities in York, as well as starting projects of our own.
Our fund priorities are Poverty, Mental Health, and Young People and Families, so grants were given to support charitable activities that focused on at least one of these areas. We were especially interested in supporting charities that work at grassroots and local community level, and also in initiatives that encourage volunteering and/or partnership working with other organisations.
In 2023 we had two grant making initiatives available for charities in York to support their social action work.
The Belfrey Catalyser Fund
The aim of this fund was to provide grants that act as a catalyst for growth, innovation, or sustainability, to help social action organisations adapt and transform in order to keep making an impact in their communities.
£100,000 was available in this fund. We awarded grants of up to £15,000 to the following organisations:
Chocolate and Co, providing employment opportunities for ex-offenders and people recovering from addiction: project worker salary
City of York Council Early Support Fund working with the Local Area Coordination team: flexible, targeted micro-grants to help people take a step towards a better life, particularly those who can’t access support through other routes
Gateway Church, The Atrium café and hub in Acomb, providing a warm space, free food and safe place to connect with other community support: staff salaries and running costs
Joseph Trust, working with children at risk of exclusion from mainstream education: part time staff member salary and provision of more non-classroom activities
St Denys Tea and Chat/Warm Space, working with the community of Walmgate to address loneliness, isolation and poverty: IT equipment and café running costs
Transitions CIC, working with children who are disengaged from education and experiencing social, emotional or mental health needs: an equine therapy horse and shepherd’s hut project
York City Church ‘The Well’ Wellbeing Community, running support events for people who are struggling with or wanting to improve their mental health, alongside tailored counselling and coaching: project coordinator salary
York Vineyard, Growbaby free clothing provision for 0 – 5s, and Soft Play group for 0 - 3s, working with refugees and families in the local community around Fishergate: equipment costs and part time staff member salary.
The Belfrey Small Grants Fund in partnership with Two Ridings Community Foundation
This fund offered grants of up to £5000 for projects that provide deep or ongoing support, or have significant impact, for one or more of our priorities. There were also some grants of £1000 available for smaller or one-off projects, especially if these bring joy into people’s lives. All this fund has now been distributed.