Sadiq Khan launches £1m Resilience Fund for London’s post-pandemic recovery
The Mayor of London announced the launch of a £1m Resilience Fund, partnering community groups and innovation experts to tackle London’s most pressing challenges.
The Resilience Fund will be delivered in partnership with Nesta Challenges, an innovation foundation.
Local authorities, public agencies, social enterprise will be asked to identify specific challenges they need solved.
Sadiq Khan said: “Our Resilience Fund will play an important role in helping the city recover from the pandemic.
“Great ideas, developed from the grassroots up, will be vital to helping the capital move forward, so I’m urging individuals and groups from all communities to come forward with their solutions to London’s challenges.”
The challenges the capital is facing are divided into the following areas: lack of social cohesion, poor air quality, food insecurity, poor housing affordability and quality, ageing infrastructure, poor health and wellbeing.
Ten key issues put forward by individual groups will be selected, and the UK’s best innovators will be invited to present how they plan to address these through new technology or innovative solutions.
Each challenge is to be given support of up to £40,000 and tailored mentoring.
The deadline for submissions is December 14. Selections will be carried out throughout the beginning of next year, with the winners announced in June 2021.
Tris Dyson, Managing Director of Nesta Challenges said: “The Fund demonstrates how some of the capital’s most important groups can work together to help businesses and communities bounce back from Covid-19 in a rapid time frame.”