Beacon Centre awarded Covid-19 Action Fund Grant
Published: 6 April 2020
More grants continue to be awarded to community groups in Exeter to help local people through the Coronavirus outbreak.
So far a total of almost £35,000 has been dished out to community groups and charities as part of the £1 million Exeter Covid-19 Community Action Fund.
The latest group to benefit is The Beacon Centre managed by the charity Isca Community Enterprises, who have received two grants totalling £4,000.
The Action Fund was launched last week in tandem with support service Exeter Community Wellbeing. The Fund enables organisations to get rapid access to small grants to allow them to work on local projects to support those people and communities most affected by the pandemic.
Prior to the outbreak, The Beacon Centre was a thriving community hub offering a wide range of activities and events for the whole community.
With a manager and 51 volunteers, the centre was a well-used facility but because of the virus, most of their activities have had to stop, leading to a loss of revenue from room bookings and other income generation.
Jan Pearkes, of the Beacon Centre, said: “We are so grateful for these grants and the money will help us continue to serve our local community through these difficult times.
“We have joined with other community groups and volunteers to create the Beacon Heath and Whipton Community Support Group. This group includes local councillors, and we are now working with Exeter Community Wellbeing and our Wellbeing Exeter Community Builder to ensure the safe delivery of essential goods and services to those who are vulnerable and self-isolating.”
Jan said that the team of volunteers would provide a range of services, such as food shopping and picking up of medication from local pharmacies
“We’ll also be making ‘welfare’ calls to individuals, anything which is reasonable and safe to do,” she added.
The Beacon Wellbeing group, originally held at the centre, will continue as a virtual group and the plan is to expand this to more than once a week.
Cllr Amal Ghusain, Lead Councillor of Equalities, Diversity and Communities, said: “The Beacon Centre is another fine example of how community groups in Exeter are pulling together for the combined good of the city. For this reason we’re proud to be supporting them through these testing times.”