Second digital crowdfunding round launched for Cheshire East community-led projects

Cheshire East Council has pledged £100,000 for community-led projects in the borough as it launches a second funding round of its Cheshire East Crowd digital crowdfunding initiative.

In partnership with civic crowdfunding platform Spacehive, the initiative gives local residents the opportunity to secure funding for their ideas to improve their local community.

Cheshire East Council has allocated a total of £100,000 to the programme, with up to £10,000 available per idea to boost projects towards their funding target. The deadline to put forward ideas is Wednesday 23 March. The previous round of Cheshire East Crowd saw more than £30,000 pledged by the local authority to 11 projects including for a a repair café in Macclesfield and a project to provide adaptive bikes on a local cycle track in Poynton. 

Sue Reason, project creator and chair of Poynton Pedals for All (pictured), said:

“We are so grateful to Cheshire East for their generous pledge to our project. 

“Poynton Pedals for All was an idea that one of our British Cycling Breeze ladies had to make cycling accessible to all on our local cycle path, the Middlewood Way, which runs from Marple to Macclesfield through Higher Poynton. 

“The support and generosity from our local town council and the pledge from Cheshire East Council has enabled us to achieve our crowdfunding target and to deliver our project – enhancing the lives of many families in our local area.” 

Cllr Mick Warren, chair of the environment and communities committee at Cheshire East Council, said:

“We’re excited to launch this second Cheshire East Crowd funding round with Spacehive and I can’t wait to see the range of ideas that our residents and communities put forward. Local people are best placed to understand the challenges and opportunities in their local area and this initiative puts them and their ideas in the driving seat.

“I’m also calling on companies and organisations that care about Cheshire East to join us in offering support to project ideas, whether funding or in-kind, so we can turbocharge the success of locally-led campaigns. The more people that get involved in Cheshire East Crowd more inspiring local places we can create together.”

Cheshire East and Spacehive will hold a virtual workshop on 3rd February at 12pm to give local people the opportunity to discuss their ideas and submissions for the digital crowdfunding initiative. Register to attend here.