Fifth Sense awarded significant grant by the National Lottery Community Fund
We are so pleased to be sharing some fantastic news with regards to the success of our grant application to the National Lottery Community Fund. The grant will support the delivery of the Fifth Sense Social Action Programme, which will place people with smell and taste disorders at the heart of our efforts to drive change in recognition, support and care at a grassroots level across England.
The funding will support a three-year programme of volunteer-led activity, led by a new team member who will be responsible for recruiting, training and supporting groups of volunteers. Our groups will be made up of people with lived experience of smell and taste disorders working alongside experts from the food, beverage, fragrance industry and other relevant areas. The groups will deliver localised support, engagement and outreach activities to ensure that more people get the information and help they need and that recognition and support for people living with smell and taste disorders continues to grow.
Fifth Sense has been built on people power. The charity was run solely by volunteers for the first 8 years of our existence and we achieved a lot by bringing together people’s skills, lived experience and motivation to work towards a shared vision.
Whilst the Covid-19 pandemic has created more awareness of smell and taste disorders than ever before, more than anything it has highlighted the lack of recognition, support and services for all those living with these sensory impairments, whatever the cause. Fifth Sense is leading the fight for change and this project will enable the people we represent and those whose careers and passions depend on these vital senses to work together to help us deliver this.
We are delighted that the National Lottery Community Fund has recognised the track record that Fifth Sense has in successfully delivering our work and that the time for this project is now.
We are grateful to the National Lottery Community Fund for supporting our work, to all the National Lottery players, and to our Fifth Sense community, without whom this grant award would not have been possible.
What happens next?
Our new project will start in spring 2024. Prior to then we’re going to be recruiting a new team member who will lead the project. We’ll be letting you know when the role is being advertised in case you or friends and family are interested in applying. Once they are in post and the project has started we will be letting you know how you can get involved in the project. We’re really looking forward to sharing more information with you in due course.
