Mayor's Opportunity Fund: £7,500 Grants, Apply by 9 Nov

Charities and community groups in Whitley Bay and the rest of North Tyneside can apply for grants of up to £7,500 from the Mayor’s Opportunity Fund, after North East Mayor Kim McGuinness put a further £1.5 million into it to help residents through the cost of living.

The fund is changing shape. The first £1 million went out in four rounds to 107 grassroots organisations across the region; the new money will be handed out through a rolling programme, with decisions made every quarter, aimed at groups supporting people in financial hardship.

The North East Mayoral Strategic Authority says applications submitted by Monday 9 November will be considered for funding in December. Groups in North Tyneside, along with the rest of Tyne and Wear and Northumberland, apply through Community Foundation North East; organisations in County Durham apply through Point North.

What the money can pay for

The authority says the grants will help “reduce household costs, improve access to services and opportunities”, and lists food provision, community transport, digital inclusion, repair and reuse schemes, and improvements to community spaces.

The Community Foundation’s application page, checked on 16 October, sets out the detail:

• Who can apply: constituted community groups and charitable, not-for-profit organisations with an annual income under £500,000.
• Who it is for: priority goes to groups supporting residents who are in financial hardship, in low-income or insecure work, falling outside statutory support, digitally or financially excluded, or less likely to use mainstream services.
• What it funds: community food provision, free or low-cost essential goods, energy-saving items, community transport, digital access, repair, reuse and sharing schemes, and peer support. Equipment and minor capital costs can be considered where the work needs them.
• How long: a grant can be spent over 12 months.
• When you hear: at the end of the month after the panel meets, so a December decision is announced by the end of January 2027.

The foundation’s page gives its own quarterly cut-off dates, listing 16 November 2026 for the December 2026 meeting, then 15 February, 17 May, 16 August and 15 November 2027 and 14 February 2028. The authority and its release give 9 November, so groups aiming for December are safest applying by then. Applications that miss a cut-off roll over to the next meeting, and the foundation says urgent requests can be considered between meetings if applicants talk to it first.

Groups that already hold a live Mayor’s Fund grant may apply again, though the foundation says it may take that into account.

A Whitley Bay group was in round one

The authority’s fund page lists Whitley Bay Big Local among the 33 small charities and community groups that shared more than a quarter of a million pounds in the first round. Big Local, which won an alcohol licence for its events last month, is the only group on that list named for the town.

Other projects the authority picks out are elsewhere in the region: Wor Hoose Community Project in Walker, which provides food, toiletries, meal kits, lunch clubs and community meals; Teams and Bensham Community Care, which strengthened lunch clubs for older people in Gateshead; Teesdale Community Resources, funded for transport for isolated rural residents; and Escape Family Support, which will expand its community shop in Ashington selling affordable clothing, household items and essentials.

What they said

Mayor Kim McGuinness said:

“From tackling loneliness and helping families through the cost-of-living crisis to supporting people into work, the Mayor’s Opportunity Fund has shown what can be achieved when you back the organisations that know their communities best.

“Over the last four rounds we’ve supported 107 charities and grassroots groups delivering practical help and changing lives in every part of the North East.

“That’s why I’m investing a further £1.5 million. I want to help even more local organisations provide the support people need, put more money back into people’s pockets and make sure nobody is left behind.”

Rob Williamson, chief executive of Community Foundation North East, which runs the fund for North Tyneside, said:

“Community Foundation North East is delighted to continue our partnership with Mayor Kim McGuinness and the North East Mayoral Strategic Authority on the Mayor’s Opportunity Fund. Together we’ve been able to fund 107 organisations to support communities across the region. This announcement of a further £1.5million to continue to tackle the impact of the cost-of-living as we head into winter will be hugely welcomed. We look forward to getting this funding out and seeing and sharing the difference it makes.”

Michelle Cooper, chief executive of Point North, which runs the County Durham side, said:

“At a time when households are struggling with the cost of living and charities are being asked to do more with less, it’s imperative that we support organisations holding our communities together. No one should have to choose between putting food on the table and getting to work. Until those barriers are removed, we’re proud to deliver a fund that steps up to support local organisations making a real difference to people’s lives.”

Questions about applying in North Tyneside go to Community Foundation North East, whose contact for the fund is listed on its grant page.