Innovation Fund Showcase in Bracknell on 21 January 2025
Background on Innovation Fund:
The Innovation Fund aims to give communities the opportunity, support, and courage to develop and implement innovative ideas that could have a big impact on the health and wellbeing of local people.
Partnership with Bracknell Forest Council:
Last year, Bracknell Forest Council, in partnership with NHS Frimley offered local projects up to £20,000 to support Bracknell Forest residents who were classed as clinically vulnerable during the pandemic and those closest to them who continued to face challenges. We were also looking for projects that could enhance the health and wellbeing of other vulnerable members of our communities and those closest to them. A full summary of funded projects can be found here.
Celebration event:
On 21 January, 2025 several project leads came together in conjunction with the Bracknell Forest Older People's Consortium, to celebrate their work and share their insights. It was a very moving and powerful event, to hear the variety of ways the funding had been used to help various disadvantaged communities and people.
Just to highlight a few; Berks and Bucks FA Walking Football is for men with motor neurone disease (MND), this weekly meet-up gets them moving without inhibition and creates a space for male bonding - some players were picked for the national squad and have travelled the world! Citizens Advice used their funding to create a team of specialists that help residents complete a complicated 50-page Personal Independence Payment (PIP) document to help them gain access to the financial support they are entitled to. One success story resulted in a £10K back payment! We couldn’t forget the beautiful birds, the Berkshire Birds of Prey. This small, family-run business brought a little owl with them to the celebration event, and whilst we were able to stroke it, the organisation’s representatives shared the powerful impact that their beautiful birds have on vulnerable people after spending time with them.