Since 2019, we’ve invested around £150,000 in local projects through our Community Chest Fund. 

This has included support for the local food bank, support for activities and projects run by community groups as well as training opportunities and much more. 

Earlier this year, we launched the third round of Community Chest Funding, making another £50,000 available to enrich lives and help build stronger communities in and around Hallwood Park and Palace Fields. 

Some of the projects we’ve granted funding to include: 

Open 360

They’re all about ensuring digital inclusion and tackling the digital divide. 

Their aim is to help combat data poverty, loneliness and social isolation, help navigate Universal Credit online and to bridge the gap for all those who are excluded from the digital world. 

They will be running a Digital Inclusion Hub for Riverside tenants at Asda by Shopping City. 

Alongside this project they also have several others you might like to get involved in. For more information visit their website here: www.open360.co.uk

Runcorn Amateur Boxing Club 

Runcorn ABC is the town’s only boxing club and has been long established since the 1960’s. To cope with growing demand, they moved to Halton Lea shopping centre in February 2021. 

In doing so, this enabled them to have a central location with good transport links so they’re easily accessible for all people of the town, especially the residents of Hallwood Park and Palace Fields, as they sit in the middle of both estates. 

The Community Chest has funded new equipment which will go towards their new expansion. They aim to provide people with the chance to improve their physical and mental health by utilising their facilities, whether that’s by them wanting to learn to box, or just to keep fit and train. For more information or to see what classes they have you could join in with, visit their website here: www.runcornboxing.co.uk 

Vibe

Vibe work with young people providing opportunity, choice, and experiences to help shape a well-spent youth. 

This funding will provide a twelve-month detached youth work programme.  Meaning the team from Vibe will be out in the local area getting to know the young member of the Halton Lea community, these sessions take place on a Thursday 5:00pm-6:30pm in both Glen Skate Park (Hallwood Park) and Town Park (Palacefields). Young people will help to shape the programme of activities in which to positively engage and have fun! For more information visit their website here: vibeuk.org

The Runcorn Sea Cadets

They aim to give young people an experience that will help them grow into the person they want to be in a safe and friendly environment. Through various activities and adventures, they learn teamwork, respect, loyalty, self-confidence, commitment, self-discipline, honesty and how to be the best version of themselves. We have funded equipment so they are able to deliver a computer engineering design course which will help the cadets towards achieving their British Science Association CREST award. For more information visit their website here: www.sea-cadets.org/runcorn 

Success story

Check out this amazing story from Community Chest 2019 about Jackie Smith, whose life turned around after attending a Community Chest-funded course run by Sew Halton: