The Department of Health has announced a new round of up to £6m worth of funding to support charities to improve people’s health and well-being.
The Innovation, Excellence and Strategic Development (IESD) Fund is awarded to voluntary groups that work towards improving the health and well-being of people across England.
A spokeswoman for the Department of Health said that the size of the fund for 2014/15 was still to be decided, but it would be between £5m and £6m. She added that there would be no upper limit on funding charities could receive. In the 2013/14 round of the fund, the largest award to a charity was £400,000.
The money charities are awarded will go towards testing and developing new ways of working in the health and social care system that will improve people’s health and well-being, achieve good outcomes in health and social care, and the sector develop sustainable business models for the future.
This year the IESD fund will be awarded to voluntary groups that also demonstrate a commitment to some of the current key priorities in the health and care system, including personalisation and choice of care and support, and improving long-term care and support.
In the last funding round (2013-14), 49 new projects were got funding under the scheme at a total cost of £5.5m for the year. These projects are now being implemented across the country, and cover a range of different areas; such as addressing health inequalities in men, increasing levels of physical activity in children and supporting people living with dementia and their carers.
Care and support minister Norman Lamb, said: "Voluntary organisations play a vital role in our health and care system – they offer support to people at the most vulnerable points in their lives and help to build stronger relationships between services and the local community. This new round of funding will improve the lives of thousands of people across the UK, helping them to lead healthier and more independent lives.
“It is crucial that we continue to champion our voluntary organisations, because their expertise allows them to design and develop innovative solutions to the big challenges we face in health, public health and social care.”
For more details on the fund click here.
