Many communities across Greater Manchester continue to face health inequalities and high levels of deprivation. This funding aims to improve access and reduce these inequalities in groups with low engagement and uptake—particularly in relation to the Covid-19 vaccine.
In Rochdale Borough, communities experiencing racial inequality have been identified as the most underrepresented in vaccination uptake. The priority for this funding is to increase the vaccine uptake through getting health messages into underrepresented communities via the trusted relationships of VCSFE organisations, community leaders and faith groups.
Thanks to funding from NHS GM, we were able to offer grants of up to £10,000 for the VCFSE sector to engage with communities experiencing racial inequality around the following priorities identified by the Rochdale Ethnic Communities Network:
- Priority 1: Trusted Spaces and Information -
Projects that establish or strengthen safe, welcoming spaces within trusted community organisations, where open conversations about Covid-19 vaccinations can take place. These spaces should support people to explore and overcome barriers to vaccination, while also providing opportunities to share experiences and gather community stories. - Priority 2: Accessibility and Communication –
Projects that reduce barriers to engagement by helping people access trusted spaces and reliable information. For example, supporting communities with travel support to get to sessions, translation services, tailored resources or social media outreach. - Priority 3: Community Outreach –
- Direct engagement to reach communities most at risk of serious illness from COVID-19, and therefore most likely to benefit from vaccination.
Projects funded via the Health Inequalities Fund
| Member Organisation | Amount Awarded | Investment Projects |
| £2,000 | The grant will enable us to deliver Op Check-In from our officially recognised Safe Space at the RISE Inavate Centre, a trusted community hub in Rochdale that already supports veterans, families, and underserved groups. The funding will be used to cover staffing, materials, refreshments, and outreach activities that make the project accessible and engaging. | |
| Caring and Sharing Rochdale | £7,392 | A targeted outreach and engagement initiative at CAS hub, which has strong ties to the local community, and can reach people who are entitled to get the vaccine but might choose not to get it due to external influences. We will create trusted spaces where beneficiaries can have open conversations about the vaccine, why they may be reluctant to get it, and debunk myths around it. |
£3,630 | We propose to plan and present a weekly live community radio show on Crescent Radio in order to engage directly with listeners who are more vulnerable to the risks of serious illness from COVID-19. We will engage directly with listeners through the use of fluent bilingual presenters and guests. To ensure a greater impact, we would like to follow up the shows with edited repeats and short 3-minute summary pieces that can be shared on social media and WhatsApp groups. | |
Castlemere Men's Group | £3,860 | Castlemere men’s group will deliver targeted sessions on Covid vaccine including other important health and wellbeing matters related to the vaccinations. We will have an open day to promote and recruit wider community members to participate in the programme. |
| Kaskosan | £8,500 | Our project will support Roma families in Rochdale to access reliable information about Covid-19 vaccination and to overcome barriers of mistrust, language, and fear. |
£10,000 | Our idea is to use our trusted, community-led space at KYP where local people, especially those from South Asian communities, can access accurate information about Covid-19 and vaccinations, share their experiences, and ask questions in a safe environment. We aim to tackle the mistrust and misinformation that currently hinder vaccine uptake by fostering open, honest conversations, enabling individuals to share their stories in a safe space where they will be listened to, but at the same time, provided the necessary health information about vaccines alongside myth-busting some of the misinformation surrounding them. | |
| Pakeeza Women's Group | £3,696 | We will deliver targeted sessions on Covid vaccine including other important health and wellbeing matters related to the vaccinations. We will have an open day to promote and recruit women from wider community. We will deliver 8 sessions using bilingual qualified worker. The sessions will be around, background, importance, benefits and long term impact of Covid-19. We will also discuss people’s perceptions, myths and negative social media perceptions around the covid vaccination. We will also discuss and explore personal and community experiences during the time of peak covid 19. In addition we will relate this back to other health related issues. |
| Army of Kindness | £7,268.74 | Army of Kindness seeks funding to deliver a community-led initiative aimed at building trust, improving access, and strengthening understanding around COVID-19 vaccination among communities in Rochdale. This project will use trusted spaces within local mosques, community centres, and food support hubs to facilitate open, culturally sensitive dialogue and engagement. Through these sessions, we will address barriers to vaccination, provide accessible information, and reach those most at risk — including older adults (75+), ethnic minority groups, and individuals with long-term health conditions. |
| Aspire 2 Inspire | £3,696 | With the grant, we will deliver a series of 10 in-person health and wellbeing workshops aimed at South Asian community members, focusing on the lasting impact of COVID-19 and encouraging informed conversations about vaccination, health inequalities, and recovery. |