New community accessible park to benefit Glasgow community

A community group in Glasgow has been praised for its pioneering commitment to support people with disabilities by planning the city’s first openly accessible activity space.Hawthorn Housing Co-operative (HHC) believes that its new outdoor play and fitness equipment plan would provide a massive boost to families in its community in Possilpark.The project is the brainchild of the Hawthorn Community Action Group, a sub-group of HHC which is made up of a diverse local community activists intent on developing local green spaces and improving well-being.Scottish Procurement Alliance (SPA) donated £10,000 through its innovative Community Benefit Fund which has allowed the HHC to progress activities and developments which they could not otherwise afford.Glasgow Disability Alliance (GDA), a disabled people-led organisation, has confirmed that the plan would provide a welcome step forward in making parks and green spaces accessible to all.HHC has so far received a total of £40,000 from the SPA’s fund over the years, which have supported a number of other projects, including developing a vegetable patch for the local community.As a not-for-profit organisation, any surplus generated by SPA – which partners with public sector bodies to fulfil construction, refurbishment and maintenance contracts – is redistributed into SPA’s Community Benefit Fund and Rebates. SPA’s 14-strong executive board members (made up of local authorities and registered social landlords) are eligible to apply for a portion of the fund each year to use for projects in their local community.SPA works alongside Lintel Trust who manage the fund and ensure projects and causes support local needs and communities.Overall, the Community Benefit Fund has handed out grants totalling nearly £500,000 over the last three years – as has helped to generate nearly £375,000 in match funding through Lintel Trust’s assistance, meaning it has helped to give Scottish communities a near £1m boost.In its last financial year (2019-20), £130,000 was distributed to 15 projects across Scotland and benefitted nearly 19,000 people directly – with another £94,000 being achieved in match funding.