Time To Take A Seat! Apply for a community bench.
Leeds Civic Trust and Time to Shine at Leeds Older People’s Forum are delighted to be working together to bring more benches to our communities and bringing colour to Leeds!
Is your community centre, surgery or local street in need of a much-needed place to sit? Would a bench be useful to you and your community? Then why not consider applying for a Time to…Take a Seat bench.
Would a bench be useful to you and your community? Then why not consider applying for a ‘Time to Take a Seat’ bench.
We have a small funding pot available for you to customise a regular bench into something beautiful that will also benefit your community.
Although this opportunity is open to all – priority will be given to applications on behalf of organisations within the Neighbourhood Network scheme, or established groups/charitable organisation working with older people within the Leeds local authority area.
The theme for 2022 benches is ‘Your Time To Shine – Celebrating An Age Friendly City’.
Guidance and Timescales
- Have a suitable place in mind for the bench, with local support and permission sought. (The Trust can offer help).
- Be in a position where older people will find the use of the bench helpful and demonstrate a local need i.e. a place where people could stop and chat to others, or a place without existing seating where older people could stop and rest.
- Able to ensure the bench is in place and fixed by March 2022.
- Be within a Leeds postcode.
- Able to store the bench whilst it is being prepared/painted.
- Some practical skills to fit the bench appropriately (guidance can be offered by the Trust).
- Be able to incorporate a Trust and Time to Shine plaque onto the bench.
- Be willing to document the process, be this within case studies, images, films, or illustrations – and invite funders to a bench launch event.
- In addition to the bench itself, Time to Shine will provide a donation of £450 towards materials to decorate the bench.
- Leeds Civic Trust can signpost you to a local artist.
- The local community should be engaged during the process.
- The Trust/Time to Shine should be shown the final design before any decoration is begun.
- Where possible, to source materials and resources locally; from independent traders, any commissioned artists/makers that you may use to be Leeds based.
- The final design should be non-political and secular.
- We reserve the right to prioritise applications for benches in areas where there is greater need.
We’re Interested, what do we do next?
Great! Please send Leeds Civic Trust an email replying to the points below.
- Please tell us if you are applying as a member of an organisation, charity etc e.g., you may be part of a ‘Friends of’ group? And do you have their overall support in applying?
- Where would the bench be located? Why is this an age friendly location? How will it benefit local older people?
- How do you intend to engage the local community/your group in the design and decoration of the bench?
- Do you have an initial/rough idea for the design? If you do, we’d love to see it!
- Do you have a suitable place to store and paint the bench?
- Would you require Trust assistance in gaining permission to install the bench?
- Confirmation that you have an independent bank account into which the money can be paid.
Closing date extended! Send the details to office@leedscivictrust.org.uk with the heading ‘Time to Take A Seat’ by 12pm on Monday 8th November.
(Unfortunately, we can’t consider applications received later).
What happens after this
We will review all applications received. Each applicant will be informed as soon as a decision is made.
Please note that there is a limited number of grants available, and we anticipate a high level of interest, therefore please do not be dismayed if you have not been successful this time.
Not sure? If you’d like to discuss your bench idea or if you’d like to find out more feel free to get in touch with Meleri Roberts, Leeds Civic Trust’s Development and Engagement Manager either via mel@leedscivictrust.org.uk or on 0113 243 9594.
