United By 2022’s ‘Ideas Made Real’ campaign awards £4,575 to social action project in Wednesbury
Three young people in Wednesbury are set to lead a new community initiative in the town, thanks to funding from United By 2022, the legacy charity of the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games.
As part of United By 2022’s Ideas Made Real programme, the charity has awarded a grant to Uplifting Minds, a Wednesbury-based social action project, totalling £4,575.
The Ideas Made Real programme, which is open to those aged 16 to 24, gives young people across the West Midlands the chance to turn their powerful ideas and youth social action projects into reality.
Young project leaders were invited to apply for an Ideas Made Real Award of up to £5,000, with each successful applicant also receiving mentoring and support from United By 2022’s specialist youth team and an assigned partner organisation, to help them deliver their project.
This year, United By 2022 has awarded grants to eight youth-led projects from across the West Midlands – a total investment of £50,000 – to help young people gain vital skills, confidence and volunteering experience while making a tangible difference to their local communities.
Wednesbury is home to one of this year’s successful projects, highlighting the city as a hub for youth creativity and social action. The initiative, called Uplifting Minds, will be led by Caitlin, Jo Jo and Liv, three young people from Wednesbury. Their social action project aims to support teenagers by offering wellbeing sessions, mental health resources and safe spaces away from the streets.
Nicola Turner, CEO of United By 2022, said: “We’re proud to support this vital social action project, which gives young people, including Caitlin, Jo Jo and Liv, the chance to use their creativity, skills and energy to give back to their local communities.
“At United By 2022, we’re strong advocates for local communities, young people and volunteers, and the Ideas Made Real initiative provides crucial mentorship and investment to help youth projects take flight. We hope this dedicated funding in Wednesbury will drive forward real social impact across the city – to the benefit of communities and individuals most in need.”
Caitlin, project leader for Uplifting Minds, said: “We’re so excited about this funding – it's honestly huge for us. With Uplifting Minds, we’re trying to help teens like us with mental health, give us safe places to go, and actually have fun. So, getting this support, and having the United By 2022 team behind us, is honestly a game-changer. We’ll be able to help so many more young people now.”
The United By 2022 Ideas Made Real campaign is open to young people aged 16 to 24, living in the seven local authorities of the West Midlands - Birmingham, Solihull, Coventry, Sandwell, Dudley, Walsall and Wolverhampton.
Since its initial launch in 2022, a total of 44 community projects have been funded by the programme, supporting 48 young people in bringing their social action ideas to life.
For more information on United By 2022, visit unitedby2022.com.
