Grenfell Recovery Strategy

The deadline for applications has now been extended to Wednesday 16 October.

The Grenfell Projects Fund (GPF) was introduced as part of the Council’s five-year Grenfell Recovery Strategy and provides grants to local residents and organisations to support North Kensington’s community-led recovery.

There were two previous rounds of the GPF, where GPF 2 and 3 were rolled into a combined delivery programme.

Grenfell Projects Fund 2024/25

The GPF is back, offering grants to support North Kensington’s community-led recovery.

Almost 100 projects have been supported, including environmental, cultural, and community-led employment programmes.

This year’s fund, co-designed with North Kensington residents, focuses on:

• Bringing the North Kensington community together
  Finding new ways to bring North Kensington residents together, celebrate their shared experiences and provide open access to unite people. 
• Community-based cultural enrichment
  Looking across the borough to understand both the existing cultural layout and bring in new forms of cultural experiences, particularly ones that focus on science, technology, design, art, architecture or engineering, and how North Kensington residents can access that. 
• Caring for our most vulnerable
  Identifying the current gaps in community provision and addressing the needs of residents who are most vulnerable and at risk of being forgotten about. 

Applications are open now. Deadline: Wednesday 16 October. For details, contact us via email at [email protected]. 

We are holding a series of advice and information sessions to assist applicants with the application form and to answer any questions they may have.

Please do come along to one of the following:

Drop-in sessions

GPF Advice and Information Sessions

Bay 20
6 August 2024, 1.30pm - 4pm
Bay 20 Community Centre, 71 St Marks Rd, W10 6JG
Eventbrite

Venture Centre
12 August 2024, 1.30pm - 4pm
Venture Community Centre, 103a Wornington Road, W10 5YB
Eventbrite 

Baseline Studios
19 August 2024, 1.30pm-4pm
Baseline Studios, Whitchurch Road, W11 4AT
Eventbrite

 

What you need to know before you apply

• GPF guidance
• GPF Frequently Asked Questions

Please email us at [email protected] if you need a paper copy of the application form or any other additional help from the team.  

Apply now 

Grenfell Projects Fund 2 and 3

Over £1.2 million was allocated to 40 North Kensington community projects as part of the second round of the Grenfell Projects Fund.

The funding was allocated following a public vote, in which almost 1,400 North Kensington residents cast more than 4,400 votes via our online platform. These votes were then combined with those provided by our resident panel and Grenfell Community Team to decide which projects would bring the most benefit to the local community.

You can view a selection of videos about our GPF2 projects in this YouTube playlist.

Grenfell Inquiry

The Grenfell Tower Inquiry report was published on 4 September which falls within the application window for Grenfell Projects Fund 2024/25. We know that the publication of the Inquiry report is an important milestone for the bereaved, survivors and local residents and for all those who have fought, and continue to fight, for justice. For more information, including an open letter to the bereaved and survivors of Grenfell, please visit this page. 

Community leadership programme

The first round of the Community Leadership Programme was launched as part of Grenfell Recovery Strategy. The aim was to support North Kensington residents who want to work alongside their community to work towards recovery, as well as wider civic participation among all groups. The plans for a second Community Leadership Programme are currently being developed.

As part of the first round, the Council partnered with a variety of voluntary sector organisations to provide a free programme of workshops that aimed to help residents strengthen their knowledge and gain new skills. See the case studies below from people who took part in the first round.

Case studies

Beverley Duguid

In 2019, we began working with local voluntary sector organisations to roll out a selection of free training courses to upskill residents across North Kensington as part of the Community Leadership Programme (CLP). 

One of these included Portobello Business Centre’s Rocket Launch Your Business course– a programme that helped to equip residents with the information and skills required to set up a business.

North Kensington resident and local success story Beverley Duguid is one of the people that took full advantage of this course, using the knowledge she gained to launch her own freelance business. 

InsightMind, which supports disadvantaged people through mindful creative courses in meditation, poetry and intuitive coaching, was created in 2020 after Beverley recognised the need for more health and wellbeing support for marginalised groups in society.

Beverley said:

At the time when I saw the course being advertised, I knew I wanted to do something to support mental health, wellbeing and mindfulness, but I was still undecided about what this was actually going to be. The course really helped me to focus in on my goals and create a business that offered more targeted support.

With previous experience working to highlight issues that affect residents who are blind and partially sighted – and living with a serious eye condition herself - Beverley initially set up the business to help tackle anxiety and social depression among this community.

However, after Covid-19 highlighted how widespread these issues were among other marginalised groups, Beverley decided to extend her offering to those with other disabilities and diverse groups who may have experienced similar disadvantages. Using the Council’s Health Equalities Programme and Grants for the Arts, InsightMind has since hosted a series of low-cost mindful courses online and in-person to help North Kensington residents deal with the aftermath of Covid-19 by becoming more present and self-aware. 

She continued:

Without the Community Leadership Programme, I wouldn’t have had the confidence to launch my business. It taught me how to set clear objectives, and properly brand and market my services to reach my target audience. 

 

Even if people attend the courses and don’t end up setting up a business, drawing out the talent within the local community and showing people that they can help themselves and be role models to other residents is incredibly important, which is why I think the Programme is so great.

Beverley is currently looking at ways to elevate her business, hoping to re-launch the website and offer more coaching services to expand her offering.

To find out more about InsightMind or to access its services, please contact Beverley by emailing [email protected].

Farzana Khan

The first part of the Community Leadership Programme (CLP) had many successes, partnering with voluntary sector organisations to help residents across North Kensington to gain new skills through free workshops and training courses.

Full time parent Farzana Khan is one of these successes, setting up local and national initiatives after taking part in TPAS’ Communication Skills and Committee and Meeting Skills training as part of the CLP.

Discovering the Programme through our bi-monthly newsletter North Ken News, Farzana signed up to help her make a real difference, gaining skills that enabled her to spearhead three campaigns. These included helping connect women through a female fund, reducing western immigration by positioning countries like Pakistan as tourist destinations, and creating funding and action plans to combat flooding.

Farzana said:

I learned so much while taking part in the courses which has since helped me to fight for causes I’m passionate about. The sessions gave me the confidence to present ideas to key stakeholders and taught me important skills like effective communication, leadership, people management, decision-making and conflict resolution.

As well as campaigning for change, Farzana has also used her skills to become a Class Rep at her children’s school, acting as a key member of the community by connecting and communicating with parents and organising events.

She continued:

Following the Grenfell fire, the sense of community in North Kensington has massively increased and these courses have really supported that. The CLP has empowered residents and given them a reason to come out of their homes and connect with other people. It’s also given residents skills that can be applied to Grenfell-related public meetings and has encouraged them to be proactive about making change, which has never been more important.

 

I’m very grateful that the Council partnered with local community organisations to host these courses and I know I’ll benefit from the skills I learned on them for years to come.

Sophie Macdonald

Throughout the first part of our Community Leadership Programme, we partnered with some amazing voluntary sector organisations to offer a selection of free courses to help residents across North Kensington gain new skills.

Sophie Macdonald, a 44-year-old carer and youth worker with a passion for art, was one of these residents – making the most of the Level 3 Certificate in Youth Work Practice course hosted by The Harrow Club.

Initially a volunteer at Earls Court Youth Club, Sophie was keen to undertake the course so she could run her own community art projects and support young people across the north of the borough.

Sophie said:

Art is essential to personal development and creative expression, so I think it’s really important that we encourage young people to engage in artistic projects. Before taking part in the course, I didn’t have the confidence to lead my own projects or properly understand how to get the most out of the young people I worked with.

However, after completing the qualification, I now know the importance of listening and responding to individual needs, establishing boundaries and how to properly safeguard participants. I also know more about where different behaviours come from and why, and how to deal with them effectively. It’s helped to boost my confidence so much and given me the extra skills I needed to manage bigger projects.

As part of the course, Sophie also completed a portfolio of practical work

across nine units – including a project at Worlds End Youth Club creating six large signs that directed people to the youth centre. After encouraging participants to think creatively, they decided to include animated self-portraits on the signs.

Sophie continued:

I really enjoyed working on the project at Worlds End. It was so rewarding to see how proud the kids were of their work and how much they enjoyed the process. Youth work is such an important part of community development, even more so after the Grenfell fire, and young people need care and support as they process the tragedy. This course was a big help in helping me to improve my youth work skills and I know I’ll be putting them to good use in the future.

Since undertaking the course, Sophie has been awarded more responsibilities in her current youthwork roles at Earls Court Youth Club and Kids on the Green. She is also planning to roll out her own artwork projects to young people across North Kensington.

Goitom Seyoum and Henock Hailemarium

One of the courses that was funded throughout the first part of the Community Leadership Programme (CLP) was a Wellbeing Coaching Level 1 course hosted by the Venture Centre.

Accredited by the International Institute of Complimentary Therapies, the six-to-eight-week course aimed to empower and develop residents, acting as the first stepping stone to becoming a qualified Holistic Wellbeing Coach.

Amenti Quashie Francis, a Holistic Wellness Consultant and Wellbeing Strategist who worked with the Venture Centre to facilitate the course, said:

The CLP initiative has really been impactful for the community because it’s all about helping them to not only gain the skills they need to further their opportunities, but also help them to deal with some of the challenges they may have faced due to the impact of Grenfell.

 

Through this programme, we’re aiming to empower, encourage and inspire those in the community to be a part of that healing and to be a part of that change.

Equipping residents with tools to provide wellbeing support and advice for themselves and their peers, the course covered topics such as physical, emotional, financial, social and career-based wellbeing.

Goitom Seyoum, a North Kensington resident who took part in the course, said:

This is really an amazing course which is helping us a lot in our community and our social life. The CLP is one of the most in-demand and highly effective programmes that I’ve found. A life-changing course that I can really focus on to help the neighbourhood and the community.

Residents learned how to recognise the potential impact of poor health and wellness practice, gaining the skills to share, advise and support others with assessments so they can help them meet their wellbeing goals.  

Henock Hailemarium, another North Kensington resident who took part in the course, said:

We’ve learned so many techniques and been given a lot of tools in order to analyse ourselves. It’s been an amazing experience for me, being able to practice it on myself and on my loved ones.

 

I think this course will really benefit people like me to rebuild our life following the traumatic events so that now we can see a light. We will be able to start healing by doing courses like this.

The Venture Centre is currently providing free wellbeing workshops every Tuesday from 11am to 6pm. If you’d like to hear more about these sessions, please email [email protected].

CLP2

After coming to the end of the CLP1 in March 2022, and with £200k dedicated to the second round of the CLP, we’ve been looking for local North Kensington residents to join our existing resident panel to help decide how we can maximise this funding and ensure the Programme is as effective as possible. 

If you’re interested in joining the panel, please email [email protected].

Once the new panel members have been selected with the help of our existing panel, we will begin to provide updates on how they are shaping CLP2.

The panel’s role in CLP2

This role includes attending regular meetings with the Grenfell Community Team, recommending ways to improve service delivery and evaluating the CLP’s impact on the local community.

The panel will also be working alongside the Grenfell Community Team to deliver Programme outcomes based on the following themes:

• Leadership and community action skills 

Teaching residents valuable practical skills such as trauma informed practice, public speaking and conflict resolution.

• Community leadership vocations

Informing residents about community leadership roles and how to acquire them, like being a charity trustee, school governor or a resident association chair.

• Business and financial skills 

Learning practical skills that include forming and running a community organisation, digital skills or creating a business model.

• Health and wellbeing for community leaders

Encouraging community leaders to think about maintaining good mental health and wellbeing, including setting boundaries, nutrition and developing safe spaces. 

Free training sessions are also provided for all panel members to help guide them through this process and to contribute to their own personal development. Refreshments are provided throughout the sessions, and members receive vouchers to thank them for giving up their time voluntarily. 

The role of the resident panel so far

The panel was initially created after months of engagement with residents where they requested greater transparency over how money was allocated for both the Grenfell Projects Fund and the Community Leadership Programme. The panel roles and responsibilities so far have included:

• Sharing their personal experiences of both the GPF1 and CLP1
• Shaping the GPF2 grants programmes and the CLP2 community commissioning processes
• Co-designing the GPF2 grant application and assessment processes
• Quality assuring the GPF2 grants programme

The panel will now be working on shaping the CLP2, as well as continuing to monitor and evaluate the GPF2.