Parklife Festival is giving back to the community with £155,000 in funding now available to support grassroots projects across Greater Manchester.
The Parklife Community Fund, run in partnership with Manchester, Bury, and Rochdale councils, helps local groups that make a positive difference in their neighbourhoods. Since launching in 2017, the festival has contributed more than £449,000 to local good causes, strengthening its connection with the communities surrounding the home of the festival, Heaton Park.
This year’s total includes £55,000 raised from guest list donations by Parklife attendees, plus a further £100,000 generated from other concerts and events held in Heaton Park. The Parklife fund will be distributed by Manchester, Bury and Rochdale councils to projects that enhance local life, from youth programmes to community wellbeing initiatives. The fund from other concerts and events will be distributed by Manchester and Bury councils.
Councillor Lee-Ann Igbon, Executive Member for Vibrant Neighbourhoods said: “Parklife brings people from Manchester and beyond to our wonderful Heaton Park and it is right that the communities living close by benefit from the event through reinvestment in local initiatives that will leave a legacy for all. The Parklife community fund means that local communities choose what’s important to them and they have the opportunity to bid for funds to invest in projects that enhance local amenities, strengthen community connections and wellbeing for the benefit of everyone.”
Sam Kandel, founder of Parklife Festival, said: “Parklife is proud to call Heaton Park home, and it’s really important to us that the festival has a lasting, positive impact on the local community. The Community Fund is our way of saying thank you to residents and supporting the brilliant grassroots projects that make Manchester, Bury, and Rochdale such special places to live.”
The Parklife Community Fund prioritises groups that use parks and open spaces or work with young people. The Manchester fund covers Higher Blackley and Crumpsall, the Bury fund covers Sedgley, Holyrood, and St Mary’s, and the Rochdale fund covers South Middleton.
Alongside the main Parklife fund, the Heaton Park Stakeholder Group Micro Funding Pot, funded by Parklife, offers microgrants of up to £500 for Heaton Park stakeholder groups. These grants support the Park Service’s Key Strategic Priorities: Women & Girls’ Safety, Climate Change, Equality, and Diversity.
The fund generated by other concerts and events at Heaton Park will focus on projects that support local good causes within the wards. The Manchester fund covers Higher Blackley, Cheetham and Crumpsall. The Bury fund covers St Mary’s, Sedgley and Holyrood.
