Belfast Council is offering £2,500 grants to local groups joining the 'Take 5 steps to wellbeing' campaign.
It is the latest "participatory budgeting" project currently running in Belfast and applications close at 4.00pm on Friday 10 January 2025.
The Take 5 steps to wellbeing campaign encourages people to improve emotional and physical wellbeing with five actions per day. The first is to "connect" - that is, build connections with people, such as friends or colleagues.
READ MORE:Four mid-Victorian buildings in South Belfast proposed for listed status
READ MORE:Ormeau Road Irish language school has planning permission renewed
Number two is to "keep learning" - to try something new, rediscover an old hobby, or sign up for a course. Number three is to "be active" - any amount of physical activity is good for people, so everyone involved is asked to try and find something they enjoy.
Number four is to "take notice" - people are encouraged to be aware of the surrounding world and their feelings towards it. Number five is to "give" - to do something nice for a friend or stranger, thank someone, smile, volunteer, or consider joining a community group.
Belfast council is asking local groups to apply for a share of funding to deliver projects that they think will improve emotional health and wellbeing within the community.
If a person and their family, friends, neighbours, or a school or organised group have got an idea that helps bring Take 5 steps to wellbeing to life, they can submit a short application. If people in that area agree that it’s a good idea, then they'll get funded.
Groups can apply for funding up to £2500, and if successful they will have around six months to deliver your project, from April to October 2025.
Applicants don't have to be a large organisation or community group, and don’t need to have previous experience or have done anything like it before to make an application.
In the application, applicants only need to prepare a short summary of the project idea so people can learn more about it before casting their vote. Groups will be invited to present their project in a local venue and showcase their idea to the community and ask for their support.
The council will check that the project can be delivered safely, feasibly and legally within budget and the stated timeframe.
But it will be up to the community to decide which projects are funded. As a condition of funding, successful applicants will be required to show what they did with the money at a showcase celebration event in November 2025. The council will be there to help throughout this process.
The council says: “Participatory Budgeting in Belfast gives residents a direct say in the decisions that affect them. It helps generate new ideas, strengthen community spirit and direct funding to where residents think it will make a difference.
“With Participatory Budgeting, residents decide which projects get funded – it’s your voice, your choice.”
Take 5 steps to wellbeing is an evidence-based public health message aimed at improving the wellbeing of the whole population. Based on the Five Ways to Wellbeing developed by the New Economics Foundation in 2008, the simple and effective messages are grounded in solid evidence and draw on a wealth of psychological and economic literature from inter- disciplinary work.
The Public Health Agency supports this preventative approach regionally. Evidence indicates it is individuals who regularly practise all ‘5 steps’ who have the highest level of wellbeing regardless of circumstances.
Applications can be submitted online here or by sending this download form to this email address [email protected]
To post, use the download option to print a copy of the application form. Hard copies can be posted or hand-delivered to: Belfast Health Development Unit, Cecil Ward Building, 3rd Floor, 4-10 Linenhall Street, Belfast BT2 8BP
English (United States) ·