A project helping to bring more opportunities to children and young people in the district is to continue after receiving an £85k funding boost.
The Inspire Project, launched in 2016, has already helped more than 2,500 young people experiencing a lack of opportunities or living in challenging circumstances by offering a range of funded activities.
This has included horse riding, swimming, boxing, art and crafts, cheerleading, martial arts and sports, which might otherwise have been unattainable.
Now, thanks to funding from Arts Council England, Sport England and the government’s UK Shared Prosperity Fund, Inspire will relaunch on 1 June, offering further opportunities to young people who might otherwise miss out.
DDC will use the funds to deliver three projects under the Inspire umbrella:
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Inspire 2 Upskill – this will fund training and coaching courses for those who live, work or attend school in the Dover district. Courses will include music, drama, singing and sports coaching, and on completion the participant will receive a qualification.
The Inspire Active and Inspire Arts projects are aimed at children and young people aged five to 18 (or up to age 25 for those with special educational needs).
The Inspire 2 Upskill project will have a minimum age requirement depending on the course chosen and there will be no upper age limit. All the projects will be accessed through a referral process.
Cllr Charlotte Zosseder, DDC’s Cabinet Member for Community, said: “We are delighted to have received this funding which will not only help secure the future of Inspire, but allow us to deliver the project in a new way, offering more opportunities in sport, the arts, and skills and training.
“The Inspire Project is vitally important in making sure those who might not otherwise have opportunities are given access to new experiences.
“This can broaden horizons and build confidence among young people who, for example, could be dealing with mental health struggles, family breakdown or shouldering the pressure of being a young carer.”
Notes:
Arts Council England has funded £60,288 over a three-year period, Sport England £15,000 over one year and UKSPF £10,000 for one year.
Previous externally funded Inspire projects include Inspire 2 Change, which was funded by the Police and Crime Commissioner, to offer mentoring and activities to those who have previously offended or were at risk of offending.
Inspire Families was another project externally funded by KCC through the Helping Hands Fund. This enabled 328 families in the district to take part in activities that would usually be unattainable due to finances or personal circumstances.
The decision to accept the funding was made at a Cabinet meeting on 12 May. In accordance with DDC’s Constitution, executive decisions made by Cabinet are subject to call-in by the Overview and Scrutiny Committee. The period for call-in expires four working days after the record of decision is published. Therefore, the information contained in this release may be subject to further review and changes and may not reflect the final decision.
Posted on 14 May 2025