COMMUNITY groups and organisations in Torfaen have received almost £100,000 in support since the beginning of the pandemic, with the help of Torfaen Voluntary Alliance.

Torfaen Voluntary Alliance has worked with the groups administrating funding applications made available from Torfaen council, the Welsh Government, Comic Relief, WCVA, and the Regional Partnership Board.

In total, Torfaen Voluntary Alliance have distributed £96,000 to more than 50 organisations across the local authority.

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Anne Evans, strategic executive officer of Torfaen Voluntary Alliance said: “The community response to the pandemic has been truly heart-warming, we have seen over 160 volunteers sign up to assist others within their community during these strange times.

“The funding made available from our partners was key to the delivery of these activities and Torfaen Voluntary Alliance would like to thank everyone for their commitment, in their contribution to making Torfaen a truly community focused area.”

The majority of the funding – £32,000 – was granted to organisations supporting children and families, with a further £21,500 went to youth organisations.

£14,500 was awarded to organisations providing support for mental health, drugs and alcohol, £7,000 was granted to establish and support foodbanks, and £6,000 to organisations in financial difficulty need.

Organisations supporting older people were awarded around £4,500, and £1,500 was awarded to groups supporting the victims of domestic abuse.

Groups and organisations providing essential support to the NHS were awarded around £2,000.

As well as providing funds to organisations carrying out essential work and support, Torfaen Voluntary Alliance helped support voluntary-run community centres across the borough.

This support, around £7,000 shared between 12 centres, helped them to fund utility costs and other expenditure owing to the pandemic, as they found it difficult to operate and the groups that would normally utilise community venues in Torfaen were not running.

If you’re a local community group, voluntary organisation, sports club or community venue based in Torfaen, you can visit tvawales.org.uk to find out about the support available to you.