Inverkip Community Initiative is applying for funding in partnership with Inverkip Church Hall as two constituted groups running one community event for the Inverkip locality area.

The event, named The Kip Fest 2022, will run on the weekend of Friday 10th June, Saturday 11th June and finish on Sunday 12th June. The event  will be hosted across the three community facilities Inverkip Church ,Inverkip Bowling Club and Inverkip HUB. The event will include a wide range of community activities, entertainment, social evenings and something for all ages for our local community and surrounding areas.

The Kip Fest 2022 will benefit the wider community by encouraging participation and promoting social inclusion. Through having activities aimed at a variety of audiences, and specifically targeting those who may not already be accessing the Hub, Church Hall or Bowling club activities, the event will increase awareness of what is on offer in the local community for all ages and backgrounds.

The event filled weekend will include a wide range of activities including a Tea Dance, Ceilidh, Family Cinema, and our taster sessions of Zumba, Table Tennis, Football Coaching, Messy Play, Guitar Lessons, Painting, E-bikes, Gardening, Live Music, and Kids Boogie Time will encourage new users that will hopefully continue to access these resources when the weekend is over leaving a new client group and bringing a new demand for these services at a local level. We are also in talks with local farmers and food companies about hosting a farmers market which we are keen to have on at the the Festival weekend.

Our event, Kip Fest 2022, has already brought together Inverkip Community Initiative, Inverkip Church Hall Inverkip Bowling Club and the wider Inverkip Community, and will only continue to bring our community together. 

Kip Fest 2022 will bring people and organisations together by hosting these activities and events across the three community halls in the village, allowing each organisation to target a wider audience than they would working alone. This will involve a wide array of community involvement and participation with many of the local clubs and activity group that meet within Inverkip HUB and Inverkip Church Hall involved in creating a 'taster session' of their activities, bringing together a wide range of people within the community. A good example of this would be on the Saturday while we have a kids show on at the hub we will have bike rides outside, with football coaching on the pitch, a Bowls Taster Session at the pavilion, Messy play at the Church hall and and Blooming Inverkip gardening group will encouraging people to join them in creating a Jubilee garden. All these activities are in walking distance from each other and connected by staff and volunteers helping across the three halls .

We shall be organising a Heritage exhibition in the Watt Hall which will comprise exhibitor stalls showcasing heritage related photos, tours, trails, memorabilia, pamphlets and books. This will also be supported with access to online local heritage resources. We shall be offering a schedule of short presentations from various groups who will give information about the rich heritage of our community. Various topics will include such as Wemyss Bay Station, researching family history, shipbuilding, architecture of the Municipal Buildings, and Greenock’s historic quarter.

Visitors at the event will be able to engage with heritage enthusiasts on a one-to-one basis and learn from their comprehensive knowledge of Inverclyde fascinating social history. The exhibition will be an informal and relaxed environment and information will be provided which gives access to follow up information online.

Our Heritage Fair in the Watt Institution aims to celebrate the many ways local people are researching, recording and passing on aspects of their culture which has significance to the way they are living their lives. We shall also visit community groups throughout the summer to introduce them to our group and to engage with more residents. IHN hopes to inspire others to share and celebrate their life stories specifically through oral histories to enable us to preserve the cultural heritage of the current generation for the generations of the future.

We would like to collaborate to run a number of events and community campaigns throughout May 2022 to “Break the Stigma” on mental health whilst raising awareness of the support available within the community. Both charities have successfully managed to combine the communities love of football and its need for mental health support and this proposal links both together to continue that journey together.  

• Event 1 would be a young person focussed mental health football tournament for 11 to 14-year-olds within the community to come together and play at Cappielow for the “Break The Stigma Cup”. There would be opportunities for young people to connect with break-off Wellbeing Sessions in the stadium and mental health awareness sessions.
• Event 2 would follow a similar pattern but would be for adults within the community who may be struggling with their wellbeing who would come together and form teams to compete for the “Break The Stigma” adult cup. There would be a number of adult-led community groups available for chats within the stadium to support the adults attending.
• Event 3 would be a week-long campaign for both charities to co-produce content with members of their services to mark mental health awareness week and the importance of breaking the stigma on mental health. This would include the distribution of campaign merchandise such as a specific Football Jersey for Breaking the Stigma and other items to raise awareness in the community,
• Event 4 would be a continuation of the young person focussed tournament into the following 6 weeks with a Friday evening “Break The Stigma” session ran within the community.

We believe that these events will help the community come together on a subject matter that is hugely important. We know that the pandemic has exacerbated mental health for a lot of the residents in Inverclyde and that having an opportunity to connect with such vital projects throughout the month of May could be crucial to help them access support that they may need. We know that the people who come through our doors are struggling with a variety of trauma-related conditions, battling addictions, mental health conditions, or experiencing suicidal thoughts. We also know that connecting these people with others who have lived-experience can be life-saving. Our football projects in the community have been able to connect with people who wouldn’t normally present at mental health services, and we believe this month-long celebration of our work will only support more people. We have gained vital feedback from parents through pilot projects running supporting young people and know that the need is there to raise awareness for our young people on mental health to help break the stigma for future generations. We also know that connecting young people with football is a great avenue to begin these conversations and believe that this event and the follow-up sessions could contribute to a stigma-free society within the area.

We want to host these events throughout the month of May, traditionally where Mental Health Awareness Week falls within the UK. The theme for this year is Isolation and Loneliness which we know is a huge factor towards creating and fostering the stigma attached to mental health.

Our Cultural Community Festival will provide an occasion for residents and visitors to  come together to share and celebrate the Queens platinum anniversary through cultural activities including-

• Intergenerational Community arts and crafts workshops
• Intergenerational concert  (Music in the Square)
• Community cooking workshops (Food crosses all borders)
• A range of free family fun activities

Our Cultural Community Festival will provide a range of activities which will focus around the development of the community arts, music and community cooking and sharing activities will be delivered to a variety of groupings from pre-school to older people, family sessions, creating intergenerational activities to build community and reinforce positive experiences. Mixed art sessions including Art/Drama, Storytelling, Music and Dance to engage the idea of using personal history and experience to drive the concept of Cultural Community.

Local people will, through arts and cultural activity focused workshops be involved in designing and delivering events to celebrate and share with the wider community encouraging positive social connections, which can enhance wellbeing and alleviate loneliness. The event will offer opportunities for people to come together as we transition to a post covid period and celebrate with friends, family and the wider community.

The Community Cultural Festival will add value to other local services working in partnership with Youth Connections, Larkfield Housing Association and Larkfield Children’s Centre will encourage more effective joint initiatives. This will enable hard to reach participants to engage with the wider community reducing isolation, to making new friends and having fun. Networking with other local services to enhance arts/cultural provision and ensuring that organisations come together to support the local community whilst tackling social exclusion and poverty whilst having access to free family fun activities. The ‘WISHES Group’ who provide opportunities to older people aged over 55, Youth Connections youth advisory group and Venture out Volunteers have been directly involved in developing our proposal.

Family Cricket Fun Day 11th June 2022 (possibly extending to further events dependant on success of first)

The aim of this event is to Increase awareness and hopefully participation in cricket in Gourock/West Greenock and Inverclyde in general. This will give newcomers to the sport an opportunity to try something new and even join a local community club.

Our club's constitution requires Inverclyde Cricket Club to be open to all ages/sexes/religions/ethnicities and currently have a good spread of members. We have a junior section for 8 to 15 year olds who are coached by our fully disclosed junior committee, with senior section dealing with over 16 year olds - oldest member is currently 72. As we recover from the COVID pandemic we hope to take cricket out into the community as we had been doing several years ago, to schools and the likes of scout and Boys Brigade groups. The initial event interest planned for 11th June 2022, but we hope that interest generated by the event will lead to more events for all ages, which could involve the full cricket season through to the end of August 2022.

A series of weekend/holiday workshops. The workshops would take place at the garden at Saint Columbas High School. The school is in the process of setting up a garden and would like the local community to be involved with this. The workshops would initially include, planting sunflower seeds in pots to take home, making herb planters and learning/sharing  gardening skills.Inviting the community into the school will have a multitude of benefits for the school and  the local community. These workshops would help build a bridge between the community  and the school. The school garden is a long term project that will need the support and help of the local community. There is also strong research that shows gardening and  working outside improve peoples mental health, which has taken a knock with lockdown.  These events will give people the opportunity to talk and share experiences and skills in an  outdoor setting. It is envisaged that the event will give attendees the skills to look after their own gardens and to be involved in the Siant Columbas' Garden in the coming years.  Giving people the opportunity to learn new gardening skills, be involved in a nurturing an caring project and learn more about the school fits the criteria of the Meloria events perfectly.

The event will be open to all members of the local community, with no barriers to taking part.  People of all ages and abilities will be encouraged to participate.  The workshops will be outside allowing people who are nervous about working in groups  indoors the opportunity to be involved. It is hoped that the event will initiate partnerships with the school and its neighbours, that will continue for many years as the school garden grows.

An intergenerational mini arts festival, celebrating the new use of a previously prohibited green space. An all-day inclusive event for the surrounding community featuring:

• Mindfulness/meditation walks                      
• Street Food
• Poetry and creative writing workshop          
• Live music from local artists
• Teddy Bears' picnic and Storytelling time   
• Children's activities

An opportunity for connection after Covid, conversation, hospitality, art therapy and fun, as a chance to reimagine the possibilities of this new space together as a community.

This festival will encourage the local community to visit this previously prohibited space, particularly those who have no private garden and those who have had little access to this site and contribute their ideas and vision for the future use of the site. We are hoping that this will be interactive on the day, with an 'ideas tree' where folk can discuss, write and display their ideas. We will encourage our multi-cultural neighbours and friends to participate in planning the event to include cross cultural exchange and friendship.

The festival will seek to foster interaction, promote good mental heath through community, and nurture confidence and inclusion in the local area by providing time and space to celebrate together in a safe and fun environment. We will be directly supporting local musicians and artists as well as reaching out to 'sister' green spaces, (eg Broomhill Hub), local schools,(eg Ardgowan),  churches, (eg Hope Church) We will encourage partnerships with local businesses and charities (eg Mindfulness Warrior, Man On, Foodshare, Spar, Porchlight, artist Nicola Young, Yvonne Lyon Music, Reely Jiggered, Urban Folkers, BEP signs and Inverclyde Shed), most of these being in our neighbourhood, or having strong links with.

Meliora funding would enable PBO to host a range of inclusive events throughout late Spring & Summer. This   would start with a community Spring Fair in April followed by a series of monthly ‘Community Get Togethers’ with different themes for each, with a focus on creativity, gardening and environmental activities. The ‘Community Get Togethers’ will be enhanced by being held in the surroundings of our therapeutic horticultural environment and gardens on the banks of the Clyde within Port Glasgow. Some of the activities planned for the monthly events include:

• Tai Chi in the Garden with sessions outside in the Parklea grounds (gazebos and covered areas would  be available in inclement weather to ensure the sessions can go ahead as planned)
• Therapeutic crafts such as Willow Weaving & Macrame.
• Herbalist Session – learning about the varied uses of herbs, how they grow and planting up your own herb planter to take home.
• Grow and Learn Together – we will provide a variety of educational and productive food growing activities within our fully accessible community growing area, learning a bit about how to “grow your own” and giving tips & ideas of how this can be achieved on a small scale at home.
• “One Planet Picnic” – in conjunction with Keep Scotland Beautiful and local partners. A chance for the community to come together for an inclusive cultural community picnic! This will promote locally grown and seasonal foods as well as encouraging people to think about reducing packaging and food waste.
• We will provide growing resource and activity boxes.

 All of the monthly events will have fully inclusive activities as well as the opportunity for people to come together to eat and share food experiences.  We will offer wider support and engagement to our community by having local partners and agencies present at these events i.e. Community Learning and Development, Health Improvement,  Environmental Services, Carers Centre, The Trust, etc who would provide a range of information/advice and will be able to signpost people to local services.

The Kilmacolm Community Council would like to hold a Jubilee village fete event, the remit being a family friendly engaging and inclusive event for all of the community. Running alongside the fete we plan to have a week long community art trail displaying artworks created by various community groups using recycled materials around the village, along with heritage photos of the village from days gone by displayed in the windows of local businesses. The fete would take place on one day over the Queens Jubilee weekend, held in Birkmyre park we would provide toilets and marquees to ensure ease of participation no matter what the weather. There will be a range of traditional games and stalls, children's entertainment including face painting and crafts along with a fancy dress parade for young people dressed as Kings and Queens. There would be a barbeque and space to encourage families to picnic at the event. We also plan to invite local groups to preform such as School Choirs, Pipe Bands and local dance and drama groups. The day will be organised by the Kilmacolm Community Council but involve participation from other local youth organisations such as schools, The Scouts and The Girl Guides. The art trail will follow a similar format to a previous spring art trail organised by the Kilmacolm Community Council, we provide a wooden board and a theme to local groups, for this event the theme will be related to decades in Britain/Scotland the groups then decorate the board with recycled materials and we coordinate the display in public areas throughout the village providing a map for people to follow. The art trail will remain up for around 1 week before being removed and distributed back to the groups or donated for display at suitable locations. Along side this we will be encouraging members of the community to submit historic images of the village which will be reproduced in large format and displayed in local premises.

Following Covid there has been limited opportunities for community led events, the Kilmacolm Community Council are confident that the fete will provide a family friendly event which will act as an opportunity for all parts of the community to participate and socialise. We believe it will attract those living in the village of Kilmacolm, as well as their family, friends and those from surrounding communities. We have sought to include activities which are suitable for the widest demographic in a central location in Kilmacolm and will promote the event on a variety of channels including social media, printed press and local posters to ensure wide coverage. It will give the opportunity for other village groups particularly those which are youth based such as schools, The Guides and Scouts to participate positively and interact with the wider community in a fun and proactive way.

GMAS would like to host two events to celebrate the Platinum Jubilee. The events will provide a safe and fun environment providing food and entertainment as part of the party celebrations.Our events will include local members of our community who are in our care, their families, friends and loved ones, and the families and friends of our staff too. We will include our executive board members and our house committee members who are all local people who give back to our community on a voluntary basis. The events will provide an opportunity for everyone to come together and reconnect, allowing us to share our experiences during the past 2 years which has been particularly difficult for our residents and their families who have felt cut off and isolated due to the pandemic.

Our events will include local members of our community who are in our care, their families, friends and loved ones, and the families and friends of our staff too. We will include our executive board members and our house committee members who are all local people who give back to our community on a voluntary basis. The events will provide an opportunity for everyone to come together and reconnect, allowing us to share our experiences during the past 2 years which has been particularly difficult for our residents and their families who have felt cut off and isolated due to the pandemic.

Our events will provide a platform for everyone to come together in a fun way. Our current intergenerational work with Inverclyde Shed, Broomhill Hub, Parklea, Battery Park and Madeira Nurseries will bring together all genders, ages, and cultures within our community. Our local partners will be invited to join in our celebrations, and we will support local businesses to provide us with our entertainment and catering requirements on the day.