READING Borough Council (RBC) has announced the successful groups who bid for a share of £70K funding, based on how they could help improve the quality of life of Reading residents.

Two pots of £20K (both co-funded by Berkshire Community Foundation) and one pot of £30K (match funded by Brighter Futures for Children) were available for arts, culture and/or heritage community programmes to run activities over 12 months as part of the year three Cultural Commissioning Programme funding.

The project aims to engage local people in arts and cultural activities they might otherwise not have access to, with a view to having a wide reaching beneficial impact on people’s health and well-being.

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It is particularly focused at those less likely to access cultural opportunities and where engagement could have a significant positive impact on people’s general outlook and lives.

The three successful cultural projects are:

‘Untold Stories’ – a series of creative workshops and work placements to build young people’s confidence and key skills and empower them to create their own film production company.

Performing arts programme – through this programme, vulnerable, at-risk women with complex needs will be creatively empowered to explore their feelings and improve their self-confidence. The women will be able to enhance their communication and conflict resolution skills by expressing their feelings through performance. This socially impactful project will be delivered by Alana House, in partnership with Rahab and Reading Rep.

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Celebrating life histories – through reminiscing about their lives and bringing common interests together, this storytelling and sharing project will engage older people at risk of loneliness and social isolation. The activities will be designed to benefit the wellbeing of the participants. It is a heart-warming project that will be delivered by Age UK Berkshire, in partnership with Younger People with Dementia Berkshire and The Museum of English Rural Life.

Councillor Karen Rowland, Reading’s Lead Member for Culture, Heritage and Recreation, thanked the "generous" funding from Brighter Futures for Children and Berkshire Community Foundation.

She added: “One of the biggest benefits of engaging in arts and cultural activities is the enormous and wide reaching positive impact on people’s health; improving recovery from illness, promoting community spirit, combatting loneliness and relieving the pressure on GP services.

"We are proud that the Place of Culture funding has chosen to focus on those for whom engaging in cultural and arts activities is not always a given, but potentially could mean so much to their overall health and happiness.

“Reading truly is the sum of all our amazing residents and groups and the efforts that they work so hard to bring to fruition for our residents’ benefits.

"These dedicated and talented people are an integral key to Reading’s drive to ensure that cultural offerings are accessible to all and representative of our diverse communities.

“The projects we have funded during year 1 and year 2 are already having a significant impact on the lives of the people involved.

“I’d also like to extend our thanks to the generous support from National Lottery players and the National Lottery Heritage Fund, Arts Council England and Historic England, which has enabled these projects to take place.”

The Cultural Commissioning Programme is part of ‘Reading, Place of Culture’ which is linked to the Great Place Scheme, funded by the Arts Council, The National Lottery Heritage Fund and Historic England.