Birmingham City Council has launched an exciting new digital crowdfunding initiative, Be Bold Crowdfunding, to enable community-led ideas that matter to local people and local communities.
Working in partnership with Spacehive, the UK’s leading civic crowdfunding platform, Be Bold Crowdfunding is an initiative that will give local residents with an idea to improve their community the opportunity to gain funding via Spacehive’s crowdfunding platform. The council has funding of £1.18M available in 11 wards, to support campaigns through the local element of the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) Funding. CIL is a charge which is levied by local authorities on new development in an area and the amount available to groups will differs from ward to ward, based on the development taking place there.
Successful campaigns can receive a pledge of up to 50% of project costs (up to 75% in exceptional circumstances) from the council, up to a maximum amount which will differ from ward to ward based on the funding available.
Birmingham City Council and Spacehive will hold a launch event on the 28th of June from 11am to 12noon, with two follow up workshops offering direct support for potential project ideas happening in early July. To register, visit spacehive.com/movement/birmingham/news.
Leader of the council Cllr Ian ward said: “We’re excited to launch Be Bold Crowdfunding with Spacehive and I can’t wait to see the range of ideas that our residents put forward. Local people are best placed to understand the challenges and opportunities in their own neighbourhoods and this model puts our communities in the driving seat.
“I’m also calling on companies and organisations that care about Birmingham to join us in offering support to project ideas, so we can turbocharge the success of locally-led campaigns. The more people that get involved in Be Bold Crowdfunding the more inspiring local places we can create together. With an exciting year and summer ahead, this programme will feed into our Commonwealth Games legacy, ensuring the impact is felt for years to come.”
Misha Dhanak, CEO of Spacehive, said: “Hearing ideas directly from residents as they reimagine their local areas – with the backing of their community – is incredibly inspiring. Spacehive is proud to work in partnership with Birmingham and we are ready to support the ambitious change people want to make happen in their local area.”
