Three Edinburgh charities have successfully secured £8,500 funding thanks to Scotmid Co-operative’s Community Connect award scheme.
Street Assist, Community One Stop Shop and Kids Love Clothes have each been awarded funding after being shortlisted by the convenience retailer as charities in the East of Scotland to receive financial support from an overall £84,000 pot.
Commenting on the support, Street Assist Edinburgh Founder, Neil Logan, said: “Street Assist Edinburgh are delighted to receive an equal share of the Scotmid Community Connect Grant with the Community One Stop Shop Project and Kids Love Clothes.
“It has been a very difficult time for many charities operating throughout the pandemic so this funding will get us some much-needed stability over the coming months as we try to re-establish our services.”
In normal times, Scotmid would typically select a shortlist of community projects which its members then vote on to allocate different amounts of funding. However, due to the pandemic, the Scotmid Board agreed that all shortlisted charities and community groups would receive equal amounts of funding within each region.
Kids Love Clothes Founder, Denise Thomas, said: “We can’t thank Scotmid enough for their massive generosity.
“We plan to use the money to purchase much needed warm winter jackets and warm clothes to pass onto children in our area. A massive thank you from everyone at Kids Love Clothes.”
Carol Swan, Project Manager of Community One Stop Shop, added: “Thank you so much to Scotmid for their generosity in granting us the funding – it could not have come at a better time for us and the individuals and families we support.
“We will use this money to enhance our services during extended opening hours, and to strengthen the ways in which we can support our service users.”
Since Scotmid’s Community Connect launched in 2017, more than £385,000 has been awarded to 39 good cause groups enabling key projects to come to life in local areas.
Harry Cairney, President and Chair of the East Regional Committee at Scotmid, said: “The pandemic has created numerous challenges for communities to overcome and adapt to.
“Community Connect is one of the main ways we can support the communities that we serve and we are delighted to provide Street Assist, Community One Stop Shop and Kids Love Clothes with funding as they continues to provide vital support to the Edinburgh community.”
