Barnard Castle-based Trade4Case Project CIC, Teesdale Day Clubs, Teesdale Rural Watch, Teesdale Community Resources, and Mickleton Village Hall have each received up to £3,000 through GoFibre’s GoFurther Fund.
The fund forms part of the broadband provider’s wider social impact strategy and supports groups making a difference in areas where GoFibre is rolling out its full-fibre broadband network.Teesdale Day Clubs (Image: Stuart Boulton)
Neil Conaghan, chief executive officer at GoFibre, said: “We know that charities continue to play a valuable role within communities, bringing people together and supporting vulnerable individuals.
“This is why we set up the GoFurther Fund.
“These organisations have been chosen as the first winners in Teesdale for each making the kind of positive impact within the local community that the GoFurther Fund is designed to support.Trades4Care (Image: Stuart Boulton)
“Through everything we do at GoFibre, we are all about connecting communities in as many ways as possible, building long-standing relationships and contributing much-needed funding where we can to make sure our network has a lasting impact.”
Trade4Case Project CIC is a not-for-profit organisation in Barnard Castle that supports young people facing personal challenges by providing practical training and work experience in trades.
Charlie Wright, director at Trade4Case Project CIC, said: “The GoFurther Fund award win is fantastic and will help us to inspire more young people from local communities to pursue careers in trades.Mickleton Village Hall (Image: Stuart Boulton)
“Many of the young people we help face personal challenges and have struggled with conventional education pathways.”
Teesdale Day Clubs has also received funding to continue its long-running lunch clubs, which support adults who are lonely or at risk of social exclusion.
Amanda Raine, general manager at Teesdale Day Clubs, said: “Clubs which bring people together, truly are the beating heart of our communities.Trades4Care (Image: Stuart Boulton)
“We’ve seen this for over three decades and with this GoFibre funding we can continue to roll out our lunch clubs to even more adults who are lonely or at risk of social isolation.”
Teesdale Rural Watch, which has 360 members and works closely with emergency services to protect rural communities, will use its funding to provide up to 30 homes with Wi-Fi-enabled doorbell units.
Jonathan Metcalf, chairman at Teesdale Rural Watch, said: “GoFibre funding is a fantastic boost for our efforts to safeguard rural communities.
“We have a vast members network but there’s always more people to help, with this additional donation set to enhance the safety for those living alone or with dementia.”
Teesdale Community Resources, a well-established hub in Barnard Castle, will use the funding to support youth worker-led sessions during term time through to May 2026.
Sarah Gent, operations manager at Teesdale Community Resources, said: “The GoFurther Fund will help us to provide vital resources for young people with youth workers in place.
“This will support TCR in this new school year and make sure that we can continue to reduce loneliness by providing children and young people with a place for them to come to.”
Mickleton Village Hall will use its grant to refurbish its kitchen to meet modern food hygiene standards.
David Hutchinson, chairman of Mickleton Village Hall, said: “We were delighted to be awarded funding towards our kitchen refurbishment.
“This included replacing all the cupboards, new flooring and new specialist worktop which GoFibre have kindly funded.
“This really finishes off the kitchen and we are all very proud of our new kitchen and hope it will serve us for the next 30 years.”
GoFibre is currently building its full-fibre network across Teesdale as part of the UK Government’s Project Gigabit.