£750k to aid communities and businesses in Wakefield after Covid

AS a result of COVID people are facing depression, emotional disturbance, insomnia and post-traumatic stress more than ever before.  This can cause long-term damage on societies and people’s lives that can last for years such as an increase in economic crisis and crime rate, anger, anxiety and ongoing sadness. 

A new project titled “A Better Future Post Covid: Empowering Communities in Wakefield District (ECWD)”, supported by West Yorkshire Combined Authority (WYCA) and funded by the UK Community Renewable Fund (UKCRF), will be conducted in partnership between the University of Huddersfield, Wakefield Council and Spectrum People to help businesses recover from the pandemic and to work with the district’s Residents Recovery Board to explore how a stronger more resilient 3^rd sector can support economic recovery.   

The total amount funded is £490,294 from the UK Government through the UK Community Renewal Fund with a secured match funding of £245,000 and was approved by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC).  

The strategic partnership aims to deliver a package of business support in five workshops that will be delivered at Huddersfield Business School to help with the recovery from the pandemic and protect them from future distress and collapse. 

The support will be accompanied by local grants which will help to identify and fund local grass root solutions to strengthen the social recovery of local people and the support of communities post COVID-19. 

The funding has enabled the University’s Huddersfield Business School to create eight Consultancy Project Assistant (CPA) roles that will undertake a supportive mentoring role to beneficiaries. The application deadline for the eight roles is 20 December 2021.

The University’s Senior Lecturer in Strategy and Business Ethics, Dr Radi Haloub, who is a member of the University’s Northern Productivity Hub, said the ECWD will act as a vaccine for mental health through inspiring beneficiaries and offering support to volunteers and workers within the Wakefield region. 

“This project will help to speed up the recovery from the economic and psychological impact of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Dr Haloub. “Our workshops are designed to provide a full package of business support to eight community centres, interact with local people and listen to their pre and post pandemic experiences.” 

This collaboration with Spectrum People and Wakefield Council aims to achieve WYCA’s objectives of supporting economic recovery from the COVID pandemic by piloting imaginative new approaches and programmes that unleash potential and instil pride in local communities in Wakefield.