Community Foundation Northern Ireland > Thematic Funds > Circle of Change Fund

Circle of Change Fund

Intro:
We're a group of people from all backgrounds from around Belfast who have come together to talk about and learn from each other about the root causes of issues affecting our communities, and over 6 months we pool our fundraising and make grants to organisations working on those issues.

Area:
Belfast

Priorities:
Funding projects that are innovative or new, and that can't be funded by statutory funds. We want to support projects that are addressing the systemic causes of poverty; or that recognise the legacy of underlying sectarianism that influences many of our social problems.

The Circle of Change is a unique group of people from all walks of life from around Belfast who come together for 6 months to talk and learn from each other about the root causes of issues affecting our communities.

As a team, we want to see communities flourish despite the challenges we face. We harness our skills, resources and networks to fund a pioneering community initiative which is helping to bring change for the better in Northern Ireland.

The first Circle of Change ran from September 18 to March 19 and you can read about it here and in the Irish News.

It was an amazing success. We raised over £50,000 and were able to fund 6 excellent projects which are pioneering new ways to unlock potential in people from low income backgrounds, tackle mental health issues, and support minority groups well.

Many Circle member also told us that the experience was a rich learning experience for them personally. One told us : ‘I’ve learned, laughed, made new friends, had my eyes opened to issues I wasn’t aware of, got involved in projects that will run long after this circle is complete and gained a level of self awareness I didn’t think possible in such a short space of time’.

We are planning to start a second Circle in October 2019. If you’re interested in participating, contact Andrew at andrew@communityfoundationni.org to see how you can get involved.

Find out more about The Circle Of Change in our interview on Now TV below.