In 2023 we supported ‘Your Pots’, which offered grants of £5000 to £10,000 to help regenerative enterprise or zero-waste initiative grow into something great.

The Pots of Possibility fund supports ideas for developing a zero-waste, circular and regenerative economy in North Lancashire. It is part of  Closing Loops, a five-year £1.5 million project funded by The National Lottery Community Fund to support initiatives to transform waste into a valuable resource and stimulate a thriving, regenerative local economy. Shared Future is one of the Closing Loops partners and advising on the design of the ‘Your Pots’ participatory grant-making programme.

A regenerative economy is where local enterprises, organisations and people live and work in a way that protects and restores the environment, builds healthier communities and improves people’s wellbeing.

The first Pots of Possibility ‘Your Pots’ fund was open for applications up to 6th October 2023

‘Your Pots’ are grants of between £5000 and £10,000 for social enterprises, charities and other not-for-profit groups or organisations. These grants can be used to take forward new ideas or to scale up and expand regenerative projects and enterprises that will help our community and environment to flourish.

The grants are awarded at a public decision day where organisations present their project ideas and members of the public vote on which projects should get the money. The day is a great opportunity for organisations to build connections and increase community engagement with their project.

There wouldn’t just be one winner, and it’s not about ‘winner takes all’. It’s about local communities deciding how best to spend scarce resources and about helping some great local projects to reach their full potential.

Jez Hall from Shared Future CIC, who is advising on the design of the project, says:

‘‘Pots of Possibility, and in particular the Your Pots fund, is an exciting and well proven way to put decision-making power into the hands of the residents of Lancaster District.

To be able to choose where funding goes is a big responsibility, and, backed by the great team involved in Closing Loops, I’m confident the community will step up and it will be a great success.

From long experience of seeing this participatory budgeting approach in other places, the impact can be genuinely surprising. It’s not just about money, but also the new connections that will be forged. Sharing ideas, working together, and trusting others is the beating heart of a strong community. And that local energy and passion is what we will work with, and grow, in Lancaster District.’’

You can find our more about Your Pots and how to apply on the LDCVS website.