Downham Solidarity Fund is a mutual aid group set up to help redistribute funds within Downham Market in solidarity with people in financial need. Robert and George have been working on the Downham Solidarity Fund since mid-March this year, launching publicly in June and giving out the first grant in July. 

💸 Thanks to generous donations from the community itself (people like you!), we have been able to distribute an amazing 9 grants totalling £345! We don't ask people to justify or explain why they need help, trusting that people know how best to meet their own needs, but people have told us they have used the grants for important costs like buying food including for their kids, electricity bills, cleaning supplies, vet bills and more. 

🗓️ We post monthly fund updates on Facebook and Twitter with how many people the fund has supported that month and how much has been donated, holding ourselves accountable so the community knows the impact their solidarity is having. 

💚 We've had a very heartwarming response from the community, people supporting the fund and helping spread the word. Downham Library has put up our poster on their display for people in need, Downham Advertiser magazine has given us a slot in their magazine over the past couple of months. We've been in touch with local churches, the food bank, councillors, and other charities. We've been in touch with local businesses, let us know if you know of any that could offer support. 

We've put in applications for grants to supplement our community fundraising, but so far we've had no luck with these 'institutional funders'. This just shows how important community solidarity is. 

🗣 If you want to help us spread the word you can download our poster here and put it up somewhere, or share our posts on Facebook or Twitter. 

🥶 Looking to the coming months, we suspect the colder weather will mean people will be struggling with heating costs like last winter. We hope the community will come together to make sure people don't have to choose between heating and eating. 

📢 We also aim that in the coming months, the Downham Solidarity Fund will be more active in standing together with local campaigns. Mutual Aid is about supporting people's needs right now while also pushing for long-term change. We're joining in with the local Friends of the Earth group's "United for Warm Homes" campaign later this month. 

Let us know if you find updates like this useful, how often we should give them, if they should be longer/shorter, etc. If you would like to know more about anything mentioned here, feel free to ping us an email at [email protected] 

In Solidarity, 
Robert and George
Downham Solidarity Fund