In this newsletter

What the communities team has been doing

Three opportunities to get involved with our work!

• Business & Community: united in purpose event - employee-supported volunteering

• Who helps residents to access services when they have no one to ask? Be part of building a support network in the district

• Could being involved in our research help you get more people involved in your community or group? Share your experiences

Grants

• £1m Community Grant: 

  • Community Grant year two and underspend round

  • Grants webinars

• Environmental Grant opening and project ideas

• Councillors' Ward Improvement Grant and ideas for meeting needs

• Section 106

Young people

• Youth Council activities

• Join the Youth Council

Consultation

• Market Harborough Community Governance Review - should Market Harborough have a parish council?

Focus on community transport initiatives

• Tilton on the Hill Electric Car Club

• Other volunteer community transport - and tell us what we've missed!

• FoxConnect - how to make the most of it and feed in your views

• Increasing access to EV chargers in Leicestershire

Community Spotlight

• Frank Cooper and Gilmorton Lunch Club

Getting support

• External funding opportunities: including funding for social connection projects that could include volunteer transport.

• Getting support: funding resources and information about local and national support to groups

• Previous newsletters

• Get in touch!

What we've been doing!

Happy New Year from the Community Engagement Team! We have been busy settling back in after the Christmas break.

Gemma Finan, Community Development Officer and Becky have visited Scraptoft Parish Council to plan a consultation to understand what's needed to set up young people’s activities in their community hub. We are also speaking with other Parish Councils, so please get in touch if you’re interested.

Becca Powell, Youth Engagement Officer, hosted the first Youth Council meeting of 2026 in a rainy Lutterworth, including feedback from the elected Youth Council leaders and focus group members on a range of topics.

Business & Community: united in purpose event

With the start of the new year, the Home-Start South Leicestershire Volunteering Development Project, funded by UKSPF in partnership with Harborough District Council has gone full force into planning its networking event, which is to be the project’s grand finale before it closes on 31st March 2026.

Business & Community | united in purpose will be held on 24th March from 9.30am – 12.30pm at Newcombe House, The Point, Market Harborough, LE16 7QU.

This face-to-face networking event will bring together volunteer involving organisations and groups and businesses from across the Harborough district.

The event aims to:

• Share what support volunteer involving organisations and groups need to help them stay afloat and thrive.

Guest speakers

• Emma Pickering, Project Lead, Home-Start South Leicestershire Volunteering Development Project, sharing key findings on what support volunteer involving organisatons and groups need.

• Voluntary Action LeicesterShire (VAL), exploring practical ways businesses can support voluntary organisations

• Debs McCahon, Grants manager, Leicestershire and Rutland Community Foundation, outlining available funds (Making Local Life Better, Market Harborough Building Society Community Fund and the SWEF Enterprise Fund) as well as how businesses can donate via the Community Foundation

Any business or volunteer involving organisation or group in the Harborough district is warmly invited to attend.

Why should businesses attend?

• Discover how volunteering and community partnerships can boost staff wellbeing, skills development, involvement with customers and the community and link to corporate social responsibility.
• Meet local groups with projects that align with your values or skill sets.
• Explore flexible volunteering options that suit your workforce, from hands‑on tasks to specialist skills sharing.

Why should voluntary and community groups attend?

• Connect with businesses keen to offer time, skills, or resources.
• Learn about support available through the Leicestershire and Rutland Community Foundation.
• Build mutually beneficial relationships that strengthen your service and community impact.

Some examples of employee-supported volunteering

Fundraising support | team challenge days | gardening and maintenance | equipment or gift donations | collection drives | skills‑based or virtual volunteering | talks, workshops  and more.

Feel free to bring a colleague or friend if networking feels daunting.

For more information, to sign up or for volunteering support contact Emma Pickering at Home-Start South Leicestershire on emma@home-startsouthleics.org.uk 

Share | Connect | Impact

Who helps residents to access services when they have no one to ask? 

 Be part of building a support network in the district

HDC's community engagement team is partnering with our customer services team, Citizens Advice Leicestershire and the Help Hub at the Churchgate Centre in Lutterworth to develop a district-wide network of support for residents who are finding things difficult as services move online. This isn't just about teaching everyone to use computers or sourcing hardware or connection, it's about recognising that some people will never be online and others will always need a helping hand with complicated tasks.

Do you have pieces of the puzzle, small or big?

• Know what's really happening out there – whether you're hearing about these struggles regularly or just occasionally, your insights matter. What barriers are residents hitting? Which groups are most affected?

• Already provide support or know other groups that do – even if it's informal or occasional, we want to know what you're doing and how we might link you into a wider network of support.

• Would like to provide support – we can help with frameworks, resources, and connecting you to others doing similar work. There may also be funding opportunities we can explore together.

• Feel frustrated by the gaps – know there's a need but don't know where to signpost people? Can you identify parts of the district that are underserved, or particular groups who aren't getting the help they need?

• Would like to receive information in the future – about the work that the project is doing and future opportunities to be involved.

What would really help us to help residents

This is about creating something that actually works for our communities as more and more services go digital-only. We know this can exclude people without the right support, and we're hearing the frustration from communities and individuals, something that together we can address.

How to get in touch

We'd genuinely love to hear from you – your knowledge, your frustrations, your ideas, and even your questions about what we're trying to achieve.

Contact Gemma Finan, Community Development Officer on 07936 360191 or at communities@harborough.gov.uk

Could being involved in our research help you get more people involved in your community or group? Share your experiences

Harborough District Council is working with the Business School at Loughborough University to understand what does and doesn't work in getting people involved in community action.

If you're involved with a parish council, parish meeting, community group, young people's group, sports club, church or similar, you'll know how hard it can be to get people involved and keep them engaged.  Researchers from Loughborough University are exploring what makes some communities thrive while others struggle with participation – and they need your insights to find answers that could help to get more people involved, benefit your communities and reduce the risk of people burning out.

The research focuses mainly on villages (of any size) as there is less evidence about what does and doesn't work in these settings than for more formal volunteering opportunities through larger charities, but anyone is welcome to participate.

What they're asking for:

The method of involvement can suit you - whether that's an individual discussion, attendance at one of your meetings, or at an event where the community gets together.  They are interested in the perspectives of people who are involved in the community but also speaking to people who don't get involved, e.g. perhaps people who attend activities but don't get involved in organising them.

Why take part?

The research aims to understand what encourages or discourages people from getting involved and helping out locally, and what makes some groups successful. The findings could provide practical insights for parish councils and community groups struggling with the same challenges you face.

Whether your activities and meetings are well-attended or you're finding it difficult to get people to pitch in, your experience matters.

How we will share the findings

HDC community engagement team in conjunction with Loughborough University will share what we've found through this newsletter, on our website, through social media and possibly at an event if people are interested.  The community engagement team will also use the findings in our day to day work, e.g. attending parish or community group meetings, so you will have a chance to find out what others have said.

Get involved:

Contact Doyin Oyerinde - O.Oyerinde@lboro.ac.uk  to arrange a conversation or suggest a meeting or event the researchers could attend.

If you want a bit more information from the communities engagement team before you decide you can get in touch with us at communities@harborough.gov.uk

Community Grant updates

Closing soon - round two of year two of the Community Grant

Round two of year two of the £1m Community Grant closes on 16 February 2026, with round three around March to May and then a year two underspend round after that. Full details about how to apply and supporting examples and templates are online.

As a reminder, the Community Grant funding is for capital projects which create lasting assets across the Harborough district, such as improvements to building, facilities, or purchasing and installing equipment.

As before, Grants Officers are available to support you with applications and answer any questions you may have. Please continue to share your project ideas with us - we may be able to advise on eligibility and how to apply for the new Community Grant, or suggest alternative sources of funding. 

Underspend round - for the year one £1m Community Grant

The round for the small remaining fund from year one also closes on 16 February 2026 (running concurrently with round two of year two of the grant). There remains a small underspend pot of £64,454.

As a reminder, groups will be able to apply where any one of the following applies:

• They are groups that deliver services across the district who have not been able to apply previously. Evidence will be required of existing services or activities delivered in the district.
• They are in parishes who have not received any Community Grant funding in the first year.
• They are in parishes that have not used their full allocation. No funding will be given to a group that takes a parish above their individual allocation (in the case of small parishes, this is maximum £5k).

If there are more applications than funding available, assessment criteria considered to prioritise applications will include:

• Quality of consultation and evidence of need for the project.
• Clear demonstration of wide community benefits of the project.
• Smaller projects (e.g. under £5k).
• How much funding the parish and/or applicant has previously received from the Community Grant.

Download the guidance for full information about how to apply and contact Claire and Serretta at communitygrants@harborough.gov.uk to talk through your project.

Grants webinars - get help to apply!

We have recently offered the opportunity to book onto our live Teams webinars with the Community Engagement Team. These are informal with lots of chances to ask questions.  Grants officers, Claire and Serretta have already run two that take people through the Community Grant application process in detail.  If you weren't able to attend one of these but would like to, please email them at communitygrants@harborough.gov.uk

There is still time to book onto the remaining one that looks at the different reasons to measure the impact of your project and how you might do this:

Webinar B - Measuring what matters - understanding, evidencing and celebrating the difference you make - see the download from our website for more detailed information about what this will cover.

• Date in February 2026 to be confirmed - we've needed to move the January one because of illness, and have been in touch with people who are already registered, we will contact those participants when we've rearranged the February date, you don't need to register again.

For anyone who hasn't previously registered, let us know that you're interested using this link - Grants Webinars – Booking form

Environmental Grant opening

The final round of this grant opens on 2 February 2026 and will close on 1 April 2026.

Applications must be for a grant of between £5,000 and £20,000, with a minimum 10% match funding secured. Projects must have a clear public benefit and a positive and proven impact on the environment, meeting one or more of these primary outcomes:

• Reduce the carbon footprint of the community.
• Reduce the waste produced in the community: communities striving to reduce the amount of waste produced within their boundaries, fostering a culture of responsible waste management.
• Create, or protect and enhance, biodiversity or environmental assets such as green spaces and waterways: initiatives focused on creating, protecting, and enhancing biodiversity, as well as safeguarding environmental assets such as green spaces and waterways.
• Educate and/or raise awareness of climate change that will result in one of the above outcomes.

Please see the guidance document for full information.

Project themes we'd particularly encourage

Whilst all eligible projects are welcomed, we are particularly interested in those which focus on the less frequently seen outcomes in already funded projects such as biodiversity, climate change awareness and waste reduction.

Some ideas for projects you might be able to develop in these areas are:

• Flood impact reduction measures to protect biodiversity and the environment, such as flood gardens, tree planting, attenuation tanks and living walls.

• Re-wilding of neglected areas to create a community space such as a spare allotment or a pond or recreational area.

• Educational or awareness initiatives focused on climate change which will ultimately lead to a reduction of carbon emissions and waste or improve biodiversity and protect the environment.

Organisations are encouraged to discuss their project with the grants officers in advance of their application by contacting communitygrants@harborough.gov.uk.

Councillors' Ward Improvement Grant

***Deadline for ward councillors to tell us about their projects is 31 January***

If you have an eligible project in mind, there are just a few days remaining to contact your ward councillor to see if they will support you from any remaining ward grant they may have left.

 The Councillors' Ward Improvement Grant Scheme is available to groups and organisations in the Harborough district. Each ward councillor has been allocated £5,000 to support initiatives of their choice within their ward which will benefit residents and/or improve the environment. The funding can be for capital or revenue projects. Grants must be for values between £1k to £5k and grants must be paid to the organisation by 31 March 2026. Organisations must be constituted and have a bank account in the name of the organisation. 

Organisations must contact their ward councillor directly to discuss their project proposal.

See our website for an overview of the grant and some of the things that might be funded. 

*** Ideas for meeting local needs ***

Gemma Finan, HDC Community Development Officer, and the rest of the team have been talking to parishes and community groups about how to better meet the needs of vulnerable people in the Harborough district.

We've gone through what you've told us and done some thinking about how the grants might help you.

The main issues that have been identified are: 1. financial exclusion / cost of living; 2. social isolation and loneliness; 3. mental wellbeing; 4. activities for young people; 5. digital exclusion; and 6. mobility and transport.

For example:

• Would funding to purchase IT equipment such as tablets or laptops for people to access, or to provide noticeboards, newsletters and posters to help you address issues of digital exclusion and increase community participation and access?

• Would your organisation welcome funding to support social activities and groups e.g. set up costs such as for volunteer training, marketing, workshops?

• Would some equipment enable you to offer new health and wellbeing activities or activities for young people?

• Would your community transport schemes benefit from extra equipment such as car seats or other things to increase access to community transport? 

• Would the purchase of wheelchairs make it easier for people to access your workshops, activities or use your transport?

If you would like some help and advice about setting up groups and activities, or want  some more information about the types of initiatives that you could coordinate, contact the community engagement team at communities@harborough.gov.uk 

Section 106 

Youth Council activities

What the Youth Council has been working on

We welcomed the Youth Council back on Thursday 15 January at Lutterworth College for our first meeting of the year.

The Youth Council members were asked in the areas above, what they feel isn’t working right now, what they think it should look like in the future and what the Youth Council can do to make that happen. This will help to shape the young people's strategy to ensure it is relevant to young people.

We welcomed Miranda Mumford from the Economic Development team who spoke to the Youth Council about the Government’s Work Experience Guarantee. Miranda is starting a piece of work to support young people in the district with gaining valuable work experience and helping businesses to provide opportunities for work experience in different capacities. The Youth Council will continue to help shape this piece of work.

Last year, the Government launched the National Youth Strategy and it resulted in over 14,000 responses from young people ranging from 10-21 years old and up to 25 for those with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), including Harborough District Youth Council members.  This gave young people the opportunity to have their say on what the Government should do to help young people right now, what their biggest worries are and what their hopes are for the future.

Join the Youth Council!

We are always keen to welcome new members. We have monthly meetings on a Thursday 5.30pm-7.30pm. The meetings alternate between Lutterworth and Market Harborough each month. We provide transport through Lutterworth Community Transport and Market Harborough Community Transport to make the meetings as accessible as possible.

Although we have participants from across the district, we would also like to make sure young people from all secondary schools and colleges in the area are equitably represented, particularly in areas around Kibworth Mead Academy and Thomas Estley Community College. So get in touch with Becca if you can help with this or know young people in those areas who would like to get involved.

Market Harborough Community Governance Review 

To view documents and to take part in this consultation, please visit www.harborough.gov.uk/cgr25 or scan the QR code.

Tackling transport issues in the district

We know that transport is a huge issue across the Harborough District.  During our Parish Liaison Meetings in the Autumn it was very clear that transport is one of the main issues that affects residents and, in turn, impacts many other aspects of life, from socialising to attending medical appointments.

Whilst, unfortunately, there’s no “easy fix” to solving the transport issues, particularly in our rural areas, there are some communities who are using innovative ways to try to improve things in this area.  One example is the Tilton on the Hill Electric Car Club, who have combined having cars available for residents to borrow with a volunteer scheme to transport people who are not able to drive.

If you are a parish council or meeting or voluntary or community group that is interested in addressing transport in your area, or you know about other transport schemes in the district that we can refer residents to, please get in touch with the communities engagement team at communities@harborough.gov.uk

Tilton on the Hill Electric Car Club

Residents in Tilton are celebrating their electric car club. The car club launched in 2022, with two electric vehicles and four charging stations at the village hall.  It originally started with a Motability Foundation grant, but when that came to an end the local residents took on the challenge of setting up Tilton Green Community Projects Limited, a Community Benefit Society.

Volunteer drivers and the "Need a Lift" scheme

Another key part of the club is the “Need a Lift” scheme which is for those who are no longer able to drive or are temporarily unable to drive. They can hire the car and can enlist the help of a friendly volunteer driver. Through this scheme, residents have been able to reconnect with friends and rejoin activities they had had to give up. The service is also great for getting to appointments.

The car club offered different membership levels to cater for frequent and infrequent drivers, as well as those that need volunteer drivers.  The car club has been found to be a great way to save money and, of course, is better for the environment.

Other volunteer community transport schemes

In the east of the district:

• VASL Car Scheme - provides transport for elderly, disabled or rurally isolated people who can’t use, or have no access to public transport.

• Harborough Community Bus - runs minibuses for community group and individual members - it's easy to join.

In the west of the district:

• Lutterworth Community Transport - provides transport  to the residents of Lutterworth, Broughton Astley and the surrounding villages using cars and minibuses.

What have we missed?  Let us know of any other schemes you're aware of in the district so that we can build up a resource to support referrals.

FoxConnect – On Demand Transport and how you can get involved

As the service is relatively new, the staff are keen to work with communities so that residents can make the most of the service, there are a number of suggestions and a contact point for this at the end of the article.

Riders can book a journey through the FoxConnect App, or telephone line (0116 216 7756), based on their preferred pick-up or arrival time and location, from up to a week in advance to an hour before travel.  The service runs from 06:00 – 19:30 Monday – Saturday.

Tackling social isolation in your community

What creative ways could your residents come up with to utilise the service? If you have examples to share, please get in touch with the communities engagement team.

How You Can Get Involved

FoxConnect is keen to actively partner with parishes and community groups. Here’s what you can do:

• Trial Runs: Invite FoxConnect to offer a pilot in your area to help residents understand and feel more confident using the service.
• Community Training: Arrange for FoxConnect to attend community groups, coffee mornings etc for residents to learn how to book and use the service.
• Suggest Routes: FoxConnect is keen to hear ideas for destinations or local attractions that could be added to FoxConnect zones.
• Promote the Service: Use newsletters, social media, and parish meetings to spread the word.

To discuss partnership opportunities, please contact Lisa Manley, Sustainable Travel Officer at lisa.manley@leics.gov.uk or call 0116 232 3232

For further information please visit Market Harborough FoxConnect < Choose How You Move

Increasing access to EV chargers across the district

From HDC's Climate Impact Officer Carol Thay.

This year Harborough is leading on a bid with the other districts and boroughs, as Green Living Leicestershire to install EV charging hubs in the main market town. Harborough will have a charging hub, with solar canopy in the Commons car park. This will increase the number of chargers in Market Harborough, but also be really useful for people who want to come and visit. Residents can park and charge over night at any of the chargers.

In addition, 23 additional rural EV charging points are being installed across Leicestershire. The funding has come from the LEVI and Business Rate Pools. Leicestershire County Council also have funding for on-street chargers. There should be more chargers being installed during this year.

If you're interested in finding out more for your area, contact Helen Chadwick, Environment Coordinator at Harborough District Council.

HDC Community Award Spotlight

Frank Cooper - winner of the HDC Volunteer Award in the 60+ category 

Frank has run the Gilmorton Lunch Club for over a decade, cooking nutritious, affordable meals for around 30 pensioners each week. He ensures the club is accessible by arranging transport through Lutterworth Community Transport, where he also volunteers as a driver.

His work is a great story about how one or two people can make such a massive difference to individuals and whole communites, and we were thrilled to be able to give him the award.

What motivated you to get involved in all your volunteering activities?

It was the chance to give something back to the community. In terms of the Lunch Club, I could see there was a need for it, and my whole career had involved catering and weekend functions, so it was something I felt I really wanted to do.

What is the most rewarding part?

Seeing how much it helps people who might otherwise be very alone. As an example, it was especially heartwarming a few years ago when a lovely lady on her own, with no close family, enjoyed coming to the Lunch Club for many years and made many new friends. When she died, it was wonderful to see how many of us went to her funeral and it made you realise how alone she would otherwise have been.

How did you come to establish the Gilmorton Lunch Club; what happens at a typical gathering?

When I first retired, about 15 years ago, I discussed with John at the Volunteer Centre about setting up a lunch club and he found our first venue, which was the United Reformed Church in Lutterworth. It was a lovely building and the club became popular very quickly, with around 42 people attending, mainly from Lutterworth.

After the pandemic, the church was sadly no longer available, so we relocated the Club to the Village Hall in Gilmorton, where my wife and I live, as our new venue. Most of the Lutterworth members were still able to continue, helped by Lutterworth Community Transport, and we then added many members from Gilmorton itself. The Lunch club takes place every Tuesday for about an hour or so. My wife and I do all the cooking and we have many volunteers who help with the organising, serving and clearing up.

How did you set about attracting members of the community to attend and other volunteers to help run the Club?

We have never really struggled to attract members or volunteers and have sometime had to hold a waiting list! Word of mouth plays an important part. The Lutterworth Volunteer Centre will sometimes publicise the Club and we would be sure to mention it to any new residents in the village.

What do you think attendees gain from being in the Club - what need does it meet?

What are the challenges voluntary-run organisations like the Club face?

This hasn’t been a problem for us, but many Clubs might have difficulties with finding enough volunteers or with lack of transport in the area.

What advice would you give to someone who is thinking about setting up something like this - do you have any tips on things to do/not to do?!

To get on and do it! Don’t forget to ensure you have Public Liability Insurance and the required Health and Hygiene certificates.

You also drive for Lutterworth Community Transport - who would you say are the main users and what difference does it make to them?

Users are mainly from villages without any dedicated bus service. The majority of bookings tend to be health-related such as hospital and doctor appointments. Pre-Covid, people often used it for supermarket shopping trips as well, but such trips are now run by the Lutterworth Volunteer Centre.

Is there anything you would like to see more of in the District in relation to transport?

Just more bus services! The small Fox Connect buses are good, but they will stop if they aren’t used enough [editor's note: see above for more information about Fox Connect and different ways to get involved]. So many people may be unable to drive, taxis are expensive and, even if they have local friends or family, it’s not always possible or practical to rely on them every day.

Funding and resources from other organisations

This section contains a selection of grants outside HDC that community groups can apply for.

With all grants, check the small print for exclusions such as types of organisations and annual turnover to ensure that you're eligible.

Grant fundraising is challenging at the moment, with many funders closing programmes early or completely, reviewing or narrowing programmes, and some moving to invitation only because of the volume of applications they're receiving, so make sure you sign up for email or social media alerts from the funder if applicable if you're making an application, and/or regularly check their website for changes.

It may also be worth searching for the funder on the Charity Commission website and downloading its annual report to see if you can find out more, or some funders report on 360Giving.

We would love to know if you have been successful applying to any of these to build up our knowledge of what funders are prioritising.

See our previous newsletters for other funding suggestions, while some are included in response to specific funding rounds, others are ongoing or will be reopening in the future.

Getting further support

See the community engagement team website to download a document about the support available to various voluntary and community groups across the district.  Let us know if there's anything else you think we could include.

Previous newsletters

See previous editions of our newsletter for good practice resources and funding suggestions.

Get in touch

Let us know what you're doing! We welcome information that is relevant to community action and voluntary and community groups

communities@harborough.gov.uk | communitygrants@harborough.uk youthvoice@harborough.gov.uk

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