Buckingham Town Council has supported a number of organisations in the town with grants to aid them in providing facilities and services that benefit Buckingham residents. Other events, community assets and projects are supported by the Town Council in different ways.
Grants awarded for 2023/24 and 2022/26
In 2023, the Town Council gave grants totalling £30,683 to projects and activities beneficial to the people of Buckingham.
One Year Grants awarded 2023 – 2024
The total amount of one year grants given for 2023-24 is £9,000
Jedidiah UK
£2,000
Free Food Pantry
Swan Community Hub
£1,450
Free family summer fun sessions for younger children, and children with SEND
Buckingham Girl Guiding
£1,300
District guiding events and new tents
Moretonville Football Club
£1,000
“Target 200” Girls section
Open House
£1,000
Day trip for carers
1563 (Buckingham) Air Sqn
£600
4 laptops for cadet use
Slade Indoor Recreation Club
£500
Equipment for less able players
Buckingham Rugby Club
£450
Kit to identify safeguarding officers
Buckingham Athletic Football Club
£450
Physio tables and training equipment
Buckingham & District Angling Club
£250
Predation protection – fish refuge
Four Year Grants awarded 2022-26
Four year grants were awarded for the first time in 2022 – allowing local groups to plan for the future.
The total amount of four year grants given for the 2023 – 2024 year is £21,683. The grant amount is paid to our four-year grant holders once a year, with a 3.5% uplift annually.
Citizens Advice Bucks
£5,951
Free expert advice on a range of issues including financial advice
Bucks Youth Clubs Ltd
£5,382
After school youth sessions and trips for young people with trained staff
Buckingham Old Gaol
£5,175
Maintaining this unique museum and it’s local history exhibits
Buckingham Summer Festival
£2,070
Organise and host the annual Festival Gala Concert as part of Buckingham Summer Festival.
Buckingham Lawn Tennis Club
£1,553
Replace the 10 floodlights at the Tennis Club with environmentally friendly LED lamp alternatives
Chandos Park Bowls Club
£1,035
Maintain the Chandos Park Bowls Club Green
Project Street Life
£518
Residential activities weekend away for young people
Past Project: Swan Community Hub (One Year Grant)
Swan Community Hub received £1000 in 2019-2020, and used this towards a laptop for the Buckingham Job Club which helps unemployed people back into work, through confidence building and help with CVs and interviews. The rest of the funding was used towards running Free Summer Activity Sessions for families with young children.
The Summer Sessions focused on having free fun together at home and around Buckingham parks through crafts, sports and games. The funding supported the rent of the Community Centre for four activity sessions and take away craft, book and activity packs for families to enjoy at home together. 141 children attended the sessions and parents loved them!
Past Project: Citizens Advice Aylesbury Vale (Buckingham area) (Long Term Grant)
Citizens Advice Bucks (CAB) runs an office in Buckingham that supports residents in Buckingham and the surrounding area that need help or advice. The group has been a long term recipient of grant funding from the Town Council for many years. CAAV received £5,346 in 2020, an amount which rises each year in line with population growth.
The service, which is an independent charity, is run mainly by volunteers. In Buckingham our volunteers give in excess of 75 hours each week to help our clients. In the last year [2019], we helped 1,167 people from the Buckingham office and dealt with 4,248 different issues. This continues to grow with the increasing population.
We offer provides free, independent, confidential and impartial advice to everyone on their rights and responsibilities. Citizens advice told us that:
We help the community with all manner of issues and a variety of topics.
Debt and benefit assistance are high on our list, followed by employment and housing issues. Other areas we support local people include consumer issues and relationships. This list is not exhaustive, in fact, we have probably covered most things that affect people’s lives.
We are fortunate to have a small team who carry out home visits to those in our community who are not able to visit the office in person. Last year alone, we were successful in gaining an extra £295,000 in additional income for our clients.