Funding boost for two new Bognor Regis organisations

Two not-for profit organisations have earned the support of the town council this week, after receiving grants from the Flexible Community Fund.

The grants were approved in Monday's (October 4) Community Engagement and Environment Committee meeting and the cash will go towards helping the charities further establish themselves in the town.

One of the two organisations was the Mancave Movement, which successfully applied for a £500 grant which will allow them to provide and promote men's mental heath services throughout Bognor Regis, delivering support groups and seminars to men of all ages throughout the town.

Director and founder Simon McDougall said the grant will enable the fledgling charity to 'get up and running.'

"We've also got a £2,000 start-up from Arun District Council which covers computers and printers and things like advertising and promotion, and start-up fees so we can get a venue in the town that we can operate out of."

With hopes to extend the social enterprise out of Bognor Regis and across the south coast, Mr McDougall, who used to serve on Arun District Council, is moved by the council's confidence in the scheme.

"It feels absolutely brilliant that they're backing us. Because there's an issue around men and their mental well being, and I think it's quite big within the town. I can see money issues being a real trigger for men. We've got the universal credit cuts, we've got fuel price rises, then you've got national insurance going up and on top of that, there's food shortages and everything going on. I can see that being a massive trigger in an area like Bognor where we've got high-levels of deprivation. So I think we're going to be very much needed," he said.

The other charity to receive a grant on Monday was Bognor Regis Money, which has been given £350 in to host a fraud awareness convention later this year.

Director Matt Stanley hopes both the awarding of the grant itself and the convention, which is due to take part in November, will help increase the charity's profile, allowing it to continue to educate residents about the dangers of online scams.

"What we're looking to do is hold a session on fraud awareness and just help people learn about the different types of potential fraud out there, give them tips and advice on how they can keep themselves more secure," he said.

Mr Stanley said the flexible community fund is 'a really useful avenue' for smaller community groups and charities. "For a lot of other funding, you need some kind of funding of what you're doing and how you've benefitted people. But we don't have that yet, so this is a really useful tool to get your foot on the ladder. I was really pleased that the town council see this as a worthwhile project."

To find out more about the Mancave Movement, click here. To find out more about Bognor Regis Money, click here.