Mental Health and Wellbeing Grants
South Ribble Borough Council is proud to launch the Mental Health and Wellbeing Community Grants scheme, designed to support local organisations working to improve wellbeing across our borough.
Before applying, please ensure you have read all the introductory information.
Expected Outcomes
The primary objective is to improve mental health and wellbeing through accessible community support
Through this scheme, we aim to achieve:
-
Improved wellbeing for residents.
-
Increased access to community-based mental health support
Project Duration: 6–8 months (up until March 2027)
Projects of Particular Interest
We are especially keen to support projects that address identified gaps in local services, such as:
1. Community-Based Early Intervention
Projects that provide non‑clinical, early support for people at risk of experiencing emotional crisis. Services that complement our existing Social Prescribing service rather than duplicates.
Examples include:
-
Support for people who are in employment, through offering evening or weekend services.
-
Safe spaces for men, women or young adults
-
Outreach programmes in rural areas that bridge the gap between community support and clinical services, offering help before crisis point.
-
Support for parents of children with disabilities and SEND needs.
2. Inclusive Mental Health Support for Under‑Served Groups
Initiatives that improve access for communities who face barriers to traditional services, such as:
-
Low-income families who are working and miss out on benefits threshold (evening / out of hours support).
-
Ethnic minority groups
-
LGBTQ+ residents
-
Carers
Projects might include culturally sensitive wellbeing sessions, translation-supported groups, or tailored emotional support programmes.
3. Practical Life Skills & Resilience Building
Projects that help residents develop everyday skills that support emotional wellbeing, without duplicating existing 'Cook, Eat and Learn' sessions delivered by the Active Health and Social Prescribing team.
Examples:
-
Basic life skills, budgeting and financial wellbeing workshops
-
Sleep, stress, and resilience courses
-
Confidence-building or assertiveness groups
-
Creative arts or nature based wellbeing programmes
These should enhance the wider wellbeing by offering distinct, non‑clinical skill building opportunities.
4. Support for Young People Facing Emotional or Mental Health Challenges
Initiatives that fill gaps in youth mental health provision, such as:
-
After‑school wellbeing clubs
-
Programmes supporting exam stress, bullying, or social anxiety
-
Youth mentoring or peer‑support networks
-
Activities that help young people build coping strategies, resilience and emotional wellbeing.
These should complement existing school‑based or statutory services by offering community‑led, accessible support.
Compliance, Monitoring and Evaluation
To ensure high‑quality, safe and effective delivery of mental health and emotional wellbeing activities, all funded groups will be required to meet the following standards.
Safeguarding, Risk Management and Duty of Care
Applicants must demonstrate that they have robust safeguarding policies and procedures in place, including:
-
Clear processes for identifying, assessing and responding to risk and safeguarding concerns, including emotional distress, self‑harm or suicidal ideation.
-
Evidence that staff and volunteers understand their roles and responsibilities in safeguarding, confidentiality, and information sharing.
-
Procedures for recording and reporting incidents, including how concerns are communicated internally and, where appropriate, to external agencies.
Where relevant, organisations should also outline how they maintain safe environments (physical or digital), manage lone working, and ensure appropriate supervision for staff and volunteers.
Training and Competency
It is beneficial for organisations to demonstrate that staff or volunteers have relevant training in mental health and wellbeing. This may include, but is not limited to:
-
Mental Health First Aid (MHFA)
-
ASIST (Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training)
-
Safeguarding Adults/Children
-
Trauma‑informed practice, counselling skills, or other wellbeing‑related CPD
Please include details of any relevant training, qualifications or lived‑experience expertise within your application.
Monitoring Requirements
Funded groups will be required to submit quarterly monitoring returns. These will include:
-
Financial information relating to the project, including all receipts and invoices.
-
Case studies demonstrating the impact of your work on individuals or communities
-
A before‑and‑after wellbeing measure using the ONS4 personal wellbeing questions (asked at the start and end of engagement)
-
Basic project data such as attendance, demographics, outputs delivered, and any challenges or learning
We expect organisations to collect data consistently and ethically, ensuring participants understand how their information will be used.
Apply for the Mental Health and Wellbeing Grant
Applications are completed using an online Mental Health and Wellbeing Grant form, please allow approximately 40 minutes to complete.
The application needs to be completed in one sitting as there is no facility to save your progress. To help you prepare your answers there is a PDF copy of the application available.
The application form will ask you to describe your project in detail. You will also be asked to upload compliance information documents which will be listed before you begin the application.
If you need any support with the application form, please contact our grants team on communitygrants@southribble.gov.uk