Team Barrow has awarded £2.8m to strengthen the town’s voluntary, community, faith and social enterprise (VCFSE) sector, helping to support delivery of its 10‑year Plan for Barrow.
The latest allocation of multi-year funding comes from what was previously known as the Strategic Priorities Fund, which is an element of Team Barrow’s £5m Social Impact Fund.
Now, in honour of Sue Johnson - an adopted Barrovian whose work with Dropzone Youth Projects transformed the lives of many young people and families - the fund has been renamed the Sue Johnson Impact Fund.
The £2.8m package will be distributed in annual instalments over the next four years to 12 local organisations, including:
· Women’s Community Matters
· Barrow Island Community Sports Trust
· Cumbria CVS
· Age UK South Cumbria
· A Stitch Different CIC
· Barrow Citizens Advice
· Barrow and District Disability Association
· Dropzone Youth Projects
· Carers Support Furness
· Mind in Furness
· Walney Community Trust
· Youthability
Peter Anstiss, Chief Executive of Team Barrow, said: “The Sue Johnson Impact Fund is a vital component in the delivery of our 10‑year plan. Renaming the fund in Sue’s honour reflects the extraordinary legacy she left across Barrow’s communities.
“To achieve our ambitions for the town, we need to work hand‑in‑hand with the charities, voluntary groups and social enterprises who support local people every day. Their work makes a real and lasting difference, and this funding recognises that.”
The Sue Johnson Impact Fund was co-designed through a series of workshops in 2025 involving local VCFSE groups, residents and community partners. Together they shaped the eligibility criteria, priorities and the funding process - ensuring the investment responds directly to local needs.
Cath Corkill, a director at Dropzone Youth Projects, said: “Sue was not only my colleague and office buddy she was one of my closest friends and I loved her dearly. Her strength and dedication to her role helped, supported, and touched so many hearts, enabled young people to engage, learn and be happy and worked tirelessly for all our communities. Naming this fund after Sue is such a lovely gesture and re-affirms how important she was within our sector.”
In addition to the £2.8m, Team Barrow has made a further £400,000 available for the People Helping People Fund, which is managed by Cumbria Community Foundation. The fund supports a range of projects that strengthen the community by bringing residents together through social activities.
Annalee Holliday, Head of Grants Practice and Programmes at Cumbria Community Foundation, said: “We’re delighted that Cumbria Community Foundation has been chosen to lead the participatory grant making scheme in Barrow once again.
“Last year the project was a great success, thanks to the people from across Barrow who got involved with creating the fund. They brought their own local insight and real-life experience to the community panel, shaping what the funding would support and then assessing the applications. It really was collaborative working at its best.”
Finally, a one‑off £100,000 grant has been allocated to Barrow Resolve CIC, which is a community-driven organisation dedicated to dismantling the barriers of poverty and social exclusion in the town.
Hayley Stevens, a Director at Barrow Resolve CIC, said: “I want to thank Team Barrow and partners for giving us a chance to create the positive change that is much needed by the people of Barrow and I hope that the work we do will create positive change to the way services work with people."
The £5m Social Impact Fund is designed to improve the resilience and sustainability of Barrow’s VCFSE sector, enabling organisations to deliver essential services and drive long-term, transformative change. It supports activity ranging from health and wellbeing to organisational development and community cohesion.
Team Barrow is a partnership between central Government, Westmorland and Furness Council and BAE Systems, established to ensure the town can continue delivering the UK’s submarine programme, as well as help diversify and strength Barrow’s economy.