£2.8m boost for Barrow’s voluntary and community sector

Team Barrow has awarded £2.8m to strengthen the town’s voluntary, community, faith and social enterprise (VCFSE) sector, helping to support delivery of its 10‑year Plan for Barrow.

A favourite picture of family and friends of the late Sue Johnson, pictured here enjoying herself at an event for young people.

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The latest allocation of multi-year funding comes from what was previously known as the Strategic Priorities Fund, which is an element of Team Barrow’s £5m Social Impact Fund.

The £5m Social Impact Fund is designed to improve the resilience and sustainability of Barrow’s VCFSE sector, enabling organisations to deliver essential services and drive long-term, transformative change. It supports activity ranging from health and wellbeing to organisational development and community cohesion.

Team Barrow is a partnership between central Government, Westmorland and Furness Council and BAE Systems, established to ensure the town can continue delivering the UK’s submarine programme, as well as help diversify and strength Barrow’s economy.

Now, in honour of Sue Johnson – an adopted Barrovian whose work with Dropzone Youth Projects transformed the lives of many young people and families – the fund has been renamed the Sue Johnson Impact Fund.

Supporting local organisations

The £2.8m package will be distributed in annual instalments over the next four years to 12 local organisations, including:

Women’s Community Matters

Barrow Island Community Sports Trust

Cumbria CVS

Age UK South Cumbria

A Stitch Different CIC

Barrow Citizens Advice

Barrow and District Disability Association

Dropzone Youth Projects

Carers Support Furness

Mind in Furness

Walney Community Trust

Youthability

Peter Anstiss, Chief Executive of Team Barrow, said: “The Sue Johnson Impact Fund is a vital component in the delivery of our 10‑year plan. Renaming the fund in Sue’s honour reflects the extraordinary legacy she left across Barrow’s communities.

“To achieve our ambitions for the town, we need to work hand‑in‑hand with the charities, voluntary groups and social enterprises who support local people every day. Their work makes a real and lasting difference, and this funding recognises that.”

The Sue Johnson Impact Fund was co-designed through a series of workshops in 2025 involving local VCFSE groups, residents and community partners. Together they shaped the eligibility criteria, priorities and the funding process – ensuring the investment responds directly to local needs.

Cath Corkill, a director at Dropzone Youth Projects, said: “Sue was not only my colleague and office buddy she was one of my closest friends and I loved her dearly. Her strength and dedication to her role helped, supported, and touched so many hearts, enabled young people to engage, learn and be happy and worked tirelessly for all our communities. Naming this fund after Sue is such a lovely gesture and re-affirms how important she was within our sector.”

People Helping People Fund

In addition to the £2.8m, Team Barrow has made a further £400,000 available for the People Helping People Fund, which is managed by Cumbria Community Foundation. The fund supports a range of projects that strengthen the community by bringing residents together through social activities.

Annalee Holliday, Head of Grants Practice and Programmes at Cumbria Community Foundation, said: “We’re delighted that Cumbria Community Foundation has been chosen to lead the participatory grant making scheme in Barrow once again.

“Last year the project was a great success, thanks to the people from across Barrow who got involved with creating the fund. They brought their own local insight and real-life experience to the community panel, shaping what the funding would support and then assessing the applications. It really was collaborative working at its best.”

Additional grant funding

Finally, a one‑off £100,000 grant has been allocated to Barrow Resolve CIC, which is a community-driven organisation dedicated to dismantling the barriers of poverty and social exclusion in the town.

Hayley Stevens, a Director at Barrow Resolve CIC, said: “I want to thank Team Barrow and partners for giving us a chance to create the positive change that is much needed by the people of Barrow and I hope that the work we do will create positive change to the way services work with people.”

Reaction to the grant awards

“Age UK South Cumbria is thrilled to receive this support. We are about to embark on an exciting new chapter in Barrow in relation to supporting older residents and this funding will make that possible. Through this grant we will be able to support people over 50 with a range of issues including financial support, issues of health and wellbeing and social isolation. We will also be able to expand our social activity programme to enable more people to access local activities and groups so that we can reduce social isolation. This project coincides with the opening of our new Information and Advice Centre in Roose Road, where this funding will also contribute to us being able to offer a community space for other groups and organisations to meet. The funding we receive through this grant we allow us to develop a sustainable, long-term programme of support for older people across Barrow that will be maintained way beyond the end of this grant funding.”

Phil Whiteley, CEO, Age UK South Cumbria

“We are delighted to receive this funding. Citizens Advice Barrow supports thousands of local people each year with debt, housing, benefits and employment issues. This investment helps secure the future of that service by strengthening our long-term sustainability. It allows us to plan ahead, build stronger partnerships and ensure that people in Barrow can continue to access free, independent advice when they need it most. We’re proud to serve the people of Barrow and grateful for this vote of confidence in our work.”

Claire Thornhill, CEO, Barrow Citizens Advice

“Walney Community Trust is both honoured and grateful to be a recipient of such transformative funding. The grant will enable the continuation of our services to the community of Walney, way beyond the duration of Team Barrow’s financial support!”

Jeff Chadd, Chair of Trustees, Walney Community Trust

“Receiving this support is a huge boost for YouthAbility Youth Services and Walney Community Centre. This funding will play a vital role in strengthening our long-term sustainability, helping us to build on the work we already do and continue developing opportunities for children, young people, adults and families across our community. It will allow us to invest in our future, grow our services, and ensure that both YouthAbility and Walney Community Centre remain strong, responsive and inclusive spaces for years to come.”

Les Mcleese, CEO, Youthability Youth Services and Walney Community Centre

“We are absolutely delighted to receive support for The Ability Hub. This investment will enable us to strengthen inclusive enterprise opportunities for disabled and neurodivergent residents across Barrow, helping people build confidence, develop practical skills and become more work-ready through supported volunteering and micro-production pathways. The Ability Hub represents a major step forward in creating sustainable routes towards employment, independence and long-term resilience within our community. We are incredibly grateful for the Fund’s confidence in our work and look forward to delivering meaningful, lasting impact.”

Debbie Twinney, Director, A Stitch Different CIC

“We are delighted and grateful to have been awarded this funding through Team Barrow. It comes at an important time for our organisation and for the disabled people, carers and families who rely on our support.”

“This investment helps us to maintain essential services while continuing to build a more sustainable future, strengthening our social enterprise activity and deepening collaboration across Barrow. It also ensures that the voice of our disabled community remains represented within local partnership work and decision making.”

“We appreciate the opportunity and the trust placed in us, and we look forward to continuing to contribute to positive change locally.”

Lorraine Irving, CEO, Barrow and District Disability Association

“The environment for charity fundraising remains a constant challenge for us here at Mind in Furness. We want to ensure every ounce of our time and energy is invested in supporting the mental health needs of our local community. But time and time again our resources are stretched as we desperately try to bring in enough income year on year to ensure we can meet growing need. As such a four-year grant from Team Barrow provides some stability and a degree of financial certainty that allows us the opportunity to continue delivering lifesaving services, whilst transforming our organisation to ensure our longer term sustainability. We are incredibly grateful and look forward to engaging with Team Barrow to ensure a more resilient future for much needed local charities and our local community.”

Karen Dobson, CEO, Mind in Furness

“Cumbria CVS are delighted to have received [this] funding. It will allow us to employ a Development Officer based in Barrow, working alongside local community groups to make sure they’ve got the support they deserve. It will also support us to update our website and further develop our training offer, improving our own long-term sustainability. The funding will support us to continue to maintain the Furness For You website, keeping it up to date and useful for the many local partners who use it in their day-to-day work. We’re really excited to get going, and are already planning events, including a Barrow Volunteering Fair in June.”

Bridget Johns, Operations Manager, Cumbria CVS

“This funding will help us continue to support vulnerable women, young people and their families in our town. Working alongside many other organisations we will work hard to ensure more people have access to the opportunities being created locally. Thank you and we look forward to continuing to work alongside everyone at Team Barrow in the years ahead.”

Rebecca Robson, CEO, Women’s Community Matters

“On behalf of Barrow Island Community and Sports Trust, I would like to say massive thank you to Team Barrow, for awarding us a grant. The money will be used to build an orangery which will allow the hub to provide more services and work with other partnership agencies to provide better health and wellbeing with the community, plus a community cafe. Barrow Island Community Sports trust believes the facility will make a huge difference to the lives of people living in the area.”

Rob Macloone, Director, Barrow Island Community Sport’s Trust Ltd

“As an organisation that has been delivering for over 20 years, we are continually looking for funding that can contribute to long term sustainability. This funding has given us some peace of mind and taken the pressure off finding money for core costs. The Team Barrow process has been straight forward and the support throughout has been exceptional. On behalf of our Board of Trustees, staff, young people and myself, thank you.”

Cath Corkill, CEO, Dropzone Youth Projects

“This will enable Carer Support Furness to continue to support for unpaid carers across the area. It will allow us time to develop further alongside the communities of Barrow and Furness as we move into a new era of different working practices and widening our support offer, making us more sustainable and improving the health and wellbeing of unpaid carers of all ages.”

Craig Backhouse, CEO, Carers Support Furness

“Receiving this grant is a milestone for Barrow Resolve, securing our future as a CDC and allowing us to launch our essential new service. This support validates our mission and empowers us to help in our community. Thank you so much for giving us this opportunity.”

Nicola Bull, Director Barrow Resolve CIC

“Our response to the grant for our project was beyond exciting. We joined the Barrow Poverty Truth Commission with the hope of making change and giving people with lived experience a voice. We had no idea at the time that our voices had actually been heard and it’s amazing. I want to thank Team Barrow and partners for giving us a chance to create the positive change that is much needed by the people of Barrow and I hope that the work we do will create positive change to the way services work with people.”

Hayley Stevens, Director Barrow Resolve CIC