Why this Harrogate charity still needs your support more than ever and why it matters

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Set up in 2013 by its inspirational chief executive Susie Hart MBE, Artizan International was just one of 20 local charities serving the Harrogate, Knaresborough and Boroughbridge area to receive a collective share of £414,608 from the Government’s Coronavirus Community Support Fund.

The Community Support Fund was specifically set up to help social enterprises and other bodies giving essential support to vulnerable people.

Although Artizan International was extremely grateful to receive £19,465 to support its work during this Covid year, it told the Harrogate Advertiser it actually received the funding in the summer.

Liz Cluderay, UK programmes officer for Artizan International said the grant had allowed it to launch a for a six-month project to reach and help differently-able members remotely during the pandemic.

But that is now at and end and the prospects are looking tougher once more for this Harrogate charity whose mission is to enable, empower and support differently-able people to reach their full potential through therapeutic crafts workshops, high-quality crafts training and social enterprises in the developing world that transform lives.

Liz Cluderay said: "The funding for this project has been fantastic, but it only takes us to December.

"So we need much more support to continue to provide our needed and valued support into 2021.

"It is heart-breaking to see our artisans' mental health deteriorate and skills we have worked so hard with them to build, slowly disappear, be it mobility, craft skills or social confidence.

As with many wonderful small charities doing such great work, it's been a challenging 2020 altogether for Artizan International with Covid impacting both the local craft sessions they run for differently abled people and its ability to run its usual fundraising events.

Despite the recent opening of their new shop on Oxford Street, like many organisations, the Harrogate-based charity's regular donations are down massively compared with this time last year.

Now that the Harrogate charity is back to square one financially, there are fears for the people it helps - at home and abroad.

The danger is that, deprived of social interaction and the support usually provided by Artizans International, there is a risk of a deterioration in the mental wellbeing and skills of the charity's artisans it has worked so hard with them to build, in terms mobility, craft skills or social confidence.

When lockdown happened earlier this year, Artizan International had to stop their weekly craft sessions, resulting in the temporary closure of what had been a social lifeline for many disabled people, and one of the few opportunities many of them had to get out and learn new crafts.

The grant in the summer provided a real lifeline but it has turned out to be only a temporary one.

What the grant achieved during Artizan International's six-month project

The funding allowed Artizan International to send Craft packs out to 50 local adults and children, all living with a disability and even more isolated than usual, as a result of the pandemic.

Every month its members receive a craft pack with four weeks of activities inside, all the materials and instructions they need to complete the activities, as well as wellbeing tools and lots of encouragement and support.

Alongside this, it provides weekly Youtube tutorials and four separate weekly zoom sessions to engage its members and encourage their creativity.

Artizan International also has a team of volunteers carrying out pastoral care within our community with regular phone calls and doorstep visits to try and keep everyone's spirits up as it has seen their mental health suffer as a result of lockdowns.

Artizan International: The future

Depending on which level of lockdown measures are in place in the coming months, the Harrogate charity will need funding to pay to hire a large facility so it can ensure social distancing, pay an experienced session leader to run the workshops, plus pay for the extra equipment and materials needed to run Covid-safe sessions.

It is currently applying to the few funding pots which remain open for charities to apply to.

Many funding pots have sadly been closed down due to Covid.

How you can donate to Artizan International

https://artizaninternational.enthuse.com/#!/

Who won grants across the Harrogate district?

Community Catalysts CIC (£69,000)

Orb Community Enterprise (£65,000)

Yorkshire Yoga and Therapy Centre (£48,990)

Wesley Centre Harrogate (£37,500)

Mind in Harrogate District (£24,700)

Open Country (£24,212)

Harrogate and Ripon Council for Voluntary Services (£23,346)

Disability Action Yorkshire (£21,893)

Artizan International (£19,465)

Claro Enterprises (£10,000)

Cliff House Community Support Service (£10,000)

Resurrected Bites (£10,000)

Autism Angels (£8,500)

Harrogate District Hospice Care (£9,107)

Boroughbridge and District Community Care (£9,000)

Samaritans of Harrogate and District (£8,000)

Vision Support Harrogate District (£7,056)

New beginnings peer support (£4,332)

Happy Wanderers Ambulance Association (£3,200)

Harrogate and Knaresborough Toy Library (£1,307)

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