The funding for all the organisations came from Cunninghame’s ‘Making Our Communities a Better Place Fund’ which operates throughout the year (1st April to 31st March) until the allocated funding is exhausted.

Elizabeth Shedden, a board of management member of Cunninghame Housing Association, recently presented a cheque for £1,000 to Alec Wilkie, vice chairperson of the Saltcoats Christmas Carnival Committee.

Last year’s Christmas Carnival was held on Sunday 24th November 2024 for the community of Saltcoats and surrounding areas, thanks to a small group of volunteers who planned and organised the event. The day included entertainment all through the town, from free visits to Santa’s Grotto as well as music, entertainment, story telling and a sing-along in the town hall. The Fairground was also there, offering wristbands at a fixed reduced cost of £5 per person.

Cunninghame Housing Association awarded the group funding to assist with the successful running of the event, which provided the local community with a fun filled day with so much to offer at a time of year which can prove difficult for many.

Chairperson Janet Strang said: “We are thrilled to be supporting such a worthwhile event, benefitting so many within the community and spreading some festive joy.”

Community Led and Action Support Project (CLASP) is a registered charity based in Stevenston providing services across the North Ayrshire locality on an outreach basis. It has a small staff team supported by a dedicated volunteer team who assist in delivering multiple services and activities for older people in North Ayrshire.

The organisation is managed by a voluntary Board of Directors/Management Committee. The aim of the project is to reduce isolation and loneliness, improve health & wellbeing, improve digital skills for older people many of whom are digitally excluded and to help older people feel more empowered to make informed decisions on issues that affect them.

Funding of £960 provided by Cunninghame Housing Association was to support the costs involved in running health & wellbeing and arts and crafts classes for over 50s. CLASP also provides one-to-one/telephone befriending, social activity programmes, social outings and events, one-to-one and small group digital tuition and information and advice.

Janet Strang said: “We are thrilled to support such a worthwhile project which has been running since January 2000, providing an invaluable service to the local community and supporting people in so many ways.”

Finally, Janet Strang presented a cheque for £430 to Morven Gow, convenor at the Tidelines Book Festival.

Tidelines Book Festival is a community-led charity bringing quality literary events to North Ayrshire, including free author visits to local schools and participatory community projects. The aim of Tidelines is to encourage engagement with books and reading for all ages to impact positivity on health and wellbeing and contribute to maintaining literacy levels in the local community.

The funding provided by Cunninghame was to support two visits from professional authors to sheltered housing units in North Ayrshire, creating two book festival sessions for residents to enjoy and making it easily accessible for everyone.

Ms Strang added: “We are delighted to support such an event benefitting people who may otherwise not have such an opportunity, helping to combat social isolation and making people feel part of something that they can enjoy.”

Local groups or individuals interested in finding out more about the fund can do so here.