Pots of Possibility grants help our district flourish

How could the Lancaster district become a place where enterprises, organisations and people are all actively contributing to the health and wellbeing of their communities and the environment?

The £300,000 Pots of Possibility Fund offered by Lancaster District CVS and FoodFutures provides grants to help community organisations start projects which actively repair and revive our natural world and society, rather than just maintaining them as they are.

The funding has been made available between 2023 and 2027 as part of Closing Loops, a five-year £1.5 million project supported by the National Lottery Community Fund. The second round of the Community Pots strand can grant up to £5,000 for community initiatives that help with:

• reusing, repurposing and repairing materials currently going to waste (e.g. textiles, electronics, packaging, surplus food, etc)
• sharing resources (e.g. tools, materials, skills, etc) or repurposing unused space for community benefit 
• inspiring people to use and buy things more sustainably and to produce less waste
• growing, cooking and eating food that’s local, seasonal and sustainably produced

Applications open on 18 March and close at midnight on 30 April.

Interested community organisations can find out more by visiting lancastercvs.org.uk/pots where they will find more information about eligibility, timescales and the kind of projects the fund can support.

Projects can take place anywhere in the Lancaster City Council area – that’s Lancaster, Morecambe, Carnforth and all the surrounding rural areas – and could involve activities such as holding events, publishing information (like websites, videos, podcasts or books), providing training, working with volunteers and much more.

If you’ve got questions about the fund or would like to tell us more about your idea, we’re also holding drop-ins at Morecambe Library (1:30pm – 3:30pm on 26 March), The Sustainability Hub at Marketgate (10am – 12 noon on 27 March), and Brief Encounter Bistro in Carnforth (10am – 12 noon on 9 April).

As the umbrella organisation representing community groups in our area, Lancaster District CVS passionately believes that the best and most effective innovations which make the longest-lasting difference come from the grassroots rather than from the top down.

So we’re really excited to be able to offer this grant programme thanks to the generosity of National Lottery players, and to work alongside all the Closing Loops project partners as we collaborate to reconnect people, place, community and nature.