One of our members, Action West London, have recently gained recognition for their excellent work with and within their local community, receiving a large grant fund from the National Lottery Community Fund as well as a prestigious award.
Action West London is a well-established charity and social enterprise whose mission is changing young people and adults’ lives through Employment, Education and Enterprise. They run Acton Street Market for community benefit, providing employment for local people and helping in the regeneration of Acton High Street.
Climate Action Fund grant awarded
Action West London have been awarded £157,484 over two years as part of the second round of the Climate Action Fund for their work as part of the Acton Market Partnership Waste and Food Consumption Reduction Project. The funding will help to tackle the climate crisis in the London Borough of Ealing, with a specific focus around reducing waste and consumption through stalls from community action groups to create a ‘climate action zone’ within the Market. The National Lottery Community Fund, who have created the Climate Action Fund, are the largest funder of community activity in the UK.
Bringing racialised communities and environmental groups together from low-income backgrounds will help to promote a circular economy and engage those who usually wouldn’t get involved in climate action. Through various training sessions such as teaching sewing and clothing repairs, it will help to promote less consumption and waste through a reuse, repair and recycle scheme. The Blue Cross charity’s weekly re-use/re-sale stall and the monthly Dr Bike cycle repair stall have already demonstrated the potential of using Acton Market to promote climate action.
The CAF funding will enable Action West London to support community groups such as Ealing Repair Café, Ealing Friends of the Earth and the Tamil Community Centre to promote their activities to the public at Acton Market. Residents will learn practical skills that will contribute towards a positive impact on the planet.
There will also be monthly events put on for the community with multiple activities for parents and children, as well as the usual market 4 days a week. This is part of a High Street regeneration post-Covid, as well as providing green jobs and linking in local colleges and enterprises within the Borough of Ealing.
This new community funding comes as recent National Lottery research found that four in five adults in the UK (79%) think local communities are responsible for taking action. Action West London have been supporting local employment for 23 years and this grant will assist with their continued excellent work in engaging as many people as possible in tacking the climate emergency.
Winning a Locality Award
Action West London also recently received the prestigious Bringing Communities Together Award, at the Locality Awards ceremony in Birmingham.
Action West London impressed the Locality Award Panel by showing how the market has transformed the square and become an inclusive space.
This award ceremony took place during Locality Convention 2021 – the biggest community sector event of the year.
The Bringing Communities Together Award celebrates a community organisation who brings diverse communities/groups together, creating places where everyone belongs. As well as receiving a trophy in recognition of their work, Action West London has also been awarded £1,000 to invest in their community.
