Tampon Tax funding awarded for Oxfordshire groups as nearly 400 projects across the UK, working with some of society’s most vulnerable women and girls, share £3.4 million.
In Oxfordshire, five local charities have received nearly £40k to give girls and young women mental health counselling, empower them to overcome the trauma of sexual violence, set up a group for those with learning disabilities, provide community based breastfeeding support and raise awareness of FGM and forced marriage.
Small charities and community groups across the UK have received grants of between £5,000 and £10,000 from the Tampon Tax Community Fund. As one of the UK’s largest grant-giving organisations, UK Community Foundations (UKCF) was asked by government to distribute, for the second time, the largest share of the funding raised through the levy on sanitary products, to small, local projects, working with its network of community foundations across the country.
Oxfordshire Community Foundation (OCF) awarded five grants to the following local organisations:
- Riverside Counselling Service were given £8,000 for a project based in Didcot and Berinsfield, ‘Girls Talk’. They work with many women and girls living with challenging social & domestic circumstances and have a clear understanding of their needs. This project will be tailored very much to support those needs.
- Oxford Sexual Abuse & Rape Crisis Centre (pictured) received £9,300 to support a counselling service for women across Oxfordshire who have experienced sexual violence at any point in their lives. One user of their service said:“It’s been incredibly positive. I feel very lucky to have found you…it’s changed my life.”
- Oxford Against Cutting received £9,800 to raise awareness, about FGM and forced marriage, through workshops to community groups, young people, schools and professionals.
- Oxfordshire My Life My Choice have been given £5,965 to set up a pilot group for women with learning disabilities, allowing training or group learning on a topic that affects these women such as sexual health, growing older, relationships, and work.
- Oxfordshire Breastfeeding Support received £6,480 to allow breast-feeding support in the community in East Oxford via drop-in sessions.
Jayne Woodley Chief Executive, OCF said: “This funding supports the groups on the ground that are making a huge difference to the lives of women and girls. We know there is huge demand out there for these services and are proud to help small organisations working in our community to access vital public funding, which otherwise they may miss out on.”
In total 388 groups across the country will share in £3.4 million. Behind the numbers lie the very real human stories of women’s lives being changed through the work of grassroots community groups. From Sunderland to Southampton, from Birmingham to Barrow-in-Furness, women up and down the UK facing a multitude of issues will benefit from the programme.
Community foundations are local champions, connecting people and organisations that want to improve their communities.They invest in local people and organisations tackling some of the biggest issues facing communities today and supporting some of society’s most disadvantaged people. They provide help and advice to those who want to give at the heart of their communities, both now and in the long-term, by matching donors to important local causes.