Brampton Park alternative funding streams application

After ClimateYouChange’s unsuccessful Newham Council Community Assembly funding application [See article: 'ClimateYouChange community funding bid for Green Infrastructure and Teaching project at Brampton Park'], ClimateYouChange contacted Anna Yusuf, the Community Neighbourhoods Senior Officer for East Ham, and suggested that Anna let them know of any alternative funding streams for our food growing suggestions at Brampton Park, building upon our original involvement in community co-design [see article - 'Let's Grow Brampton Park'].

As a reminder from our previous application, we were requesting funds for:

• Durable, non-toxic, low carbon footprint raised beds

• Additional fruit trees (beyond those already planned for the space)

• A reliable rainwater harvesting system to substantively cope with the site’s watering needs

• A natural food growing medium (to replace the proposed crushed concrete) for the Mediterranean herb garden

• Extra wildflowers and plants for pollinators/beneficial insects.
  

These funds were requested to not only help residents by providing adequate facilities where they can learn how to grow healthy, organic food, but crucially to also teach a wider group of people on how they can do the same in-home gardens, including through the use of infrastructure with a low carbon footprint and climate change mitigatory measures.

Anna Yusuf’s manager, Nicola Mackie from the East Ham Community Neighbourhood Team subsequently let us know when a fund became available which they considered would be worthwhile us applying for.

The projects to be successfully supported will be those which make the urban environment greener, through the creation of new spaces or enhancements to existing green areas, alongside increasing climate resilience and protecting the natural environment.

ClimateYouChange prepared to apply by attending a webinar with the funders, to educate ourselves as best as possible on the criteria and proposed outcomes which were the most likely to be supported by them.

There was a slight question mark over whether we adequately fitted the following funding criteria for a suitable project and location:

• are in areas of the city with poor access to open space,

• at high climate risk,

• especially where these are also areas of deprivation

• works with, or led preferably by, residents less likely to access green spaces; including minority ethnic, Black and Asian, lower-income, and older adults.
  

With this in mind, we wrote an application which addressed the funds main priorities as best we could, whilst keeping the project design elements the same as for our application with Newham Council’s Community Assembly fund, albeit with a few tweaks and improvements.

To best show this, we carefully studied the hexagonal grid maps supplied by the funder. These provided data visualisation and spatial analysis, through overlays of tiled hexagonal grids, on climate risks and green infrastructure, with relevant socio-economic data sets.

This gave us valuable data on areas close to the park, showing a pocket of high climate risk and deprivation. We expanded on this information by including relevant supporting data.

It was however difficult to show the level of financial deprivation experienced by many residents living close to Brampton Park in East Ham South. The growing trend for gentrification of the area gives a false impression of the average income of many of the residents who live in financial hardship within rental houses of multiple occupation. This made it tricky to adequately state our case for running a project on a site supporting surrounding notable areas of deprivation, but we gave it our best shot, through accompanying explanations.

Trickier yet still was being able to show lack of access to green space. The project was on a site allocated by Newham Council on the edge of a park. A short walk to the north is the main park in East Ham, which is generous in size and well-regarded in the area. Marginally further to the east is the East Ham Nature Reserve.

To the west there is considerably less green space, other than for a small park. To the south, access to a playing field is limited by a secluded walkway and stairs between housing over a raised cycle lane. It was nonetheless hard to truly say that access to green space was limited for most residents around the proposed site. This could prove problematic.

As a diverse group we naturally fit with the priority for being a project led by ‘Black, Asian and minority ethnic Londoners, lower-income Londoners, and people aged 65 and over’ (including a couple of white British middle-income group members).

We showed how we would engage with the same diverse demographic, widening access to include people with mobility and visual impairment/protected characteristics. It is important for us that we are inclusive to cater for everyone and work with the diverse communities who make up our borough.

ClimateYouChange addressed how we aim to save residents money (both through the food grown on-site and through skills learnt, to apply in home gardens), therein mitigating how the impacts of climate change will affect the many income-deprived members of our communities.

We included details of how we would protect against future weather extremes both on-site and through teaching residents of the similar actions they can adopt in home gardens.

ClimateYouChange’s application is for £20,000 of funding and includes an additional £2,000 of match funding from Newham Council. If successful, the project is to be delivered over a one-year period.

Whilst ClimateYouChange did most of the work on the application, Anna Yusuf and Nicola Mackie had access to the shared funding application portal, giving them the opportunity to add a wildlife pond into the application, plus attaching a letter of permission from Louise Wilcox, the Head of Newham Council Parks Team. They also made amendments to the budget breakdown, amalgamating some of the more detailed budget figures and swapping out the 10% contingency for maintenance costs.

Anna and Nicola supported the application by attaching their community consultation document and visuals.

We listed the London Borough of Newham Community Neighbourhoods team and Newham Parks services as partners, as ClimateYouChange will be working in partnership with the East Ham Community Neighbourhood Team with the project overseen by the Parks Department if we are successful in our funding bid.

We also included Brampton Primary School (adjoining the site for the funding proposal) as a partner. Nicola Mackie said that Anna Yusuf had sought permission for this, given that we would very much like to involve the school in the community garden.

ClimateYouChange founder, Celia was in contact with Anna and Nicola throughout the application research and writing process.

During this time, Celia sought relevant permissions, ironed out project specifics with Anna Yusuf, Nicola Mackie and their colleague Sasha Abrahams and kept them updated on the work being done.

She emailed them a copy of ClimateYouChange’s presentation for the Citizens’ Assembly on Greening the Borough with details of the relevant page numbers mentioning worthwhile climate change mitigatory infrastructure and food growing measures which ClimateYouChange felt worthwhile including within the proposal.

Celia emailed the East Ham Community Neighbourhood Team a copy of ClimateYouChange’s research on orchard planting for our M.P. Stephen Timms, plus written information (and web links for further reading) on food forests: perennial food growing spaces, which mimic natural forests, therein employing nature-inspired solutions to food growing problems. Once established (taking around three years) they then require minimal, if any external inputs (compost, fertiliser etc.) with minimal upkeep, making them the most sustainable food system that anyone can grow.

As with the previous Community Assembly funding application we wrote about measures to help our native pollinators, including year-round support, alongside helping beneficial insects.

We also included the installation of 25 fruit trees after securing permission from Anna and Nicola to plant these at Brampton Park.

ClimateYouChange further provided evidence of ecological advice which we had received further to contacting professionals working within the field of nature protection and restoration.

Fingers crossed we meet the funding criteria this time round!