The funding will support a range of initiatives tackling isolation and hardship, improving mental health and wellbeing, creating opportunities for young people and helping community organisations become more sustainable.
Home-Start Norfolk and Home-Start Suffolk have been awarded a combined £72,177 to help families with young children access practical and emotional support within their own homes and communities.
Home-Start Norfolk has received £32,450 to continue providing vital support to families with children under five living in coastal and rural communities. Through weekly home visits for up to six months, trained volunteers help parents build confidence, develop parenting skills and overcome challenges such as isolation, financial pressures and difficulties accessing local services.
The project will support families across coastal North and West Norfolk, Great Yarmouth, rural South Norfolk, Broadland and Greater Norwich within the Hornsea 3 funding area.
Caz New, Head of Funding & Development at Home-Start Norfolk, said:
"The early years can be challenging for any family, but for parents living in rural and coastal communities, isolation and difficulty accessing support can make those challenges even harder. Sometimes having a trusted person come into the home, listen without judgement and offer practical support can make an enormous difference.
"We're incredibly grateful for this funding from the Hornsea 3 Community Fund. It will help us continue reaching families where they feel most comfortable, giving parents the confidence, skills and support they need to help their children thrive."
In Suffolk, a £39,727 grant will strengthen Home-Start Suffolk's home-visiting family support in Lowestoft, where referrals have increased by 21% in just one year. The funding will enable the charity to support around 50 additional families, approximately 130 children and adults, who may be experiencing challenges including isolation, financial hardship and family stress.
Families are carefully matched with trained local volunteers who provide practical and emotional support in their own homes, helping parents regain confidence, strengthen family relationships and build greater stability.
Tara Spence, CEO at Home-Start Suffolk, said:
“We believe that everything begins with family. And that Suffolk should be a place where families never have to struggle in silence behind closed doors.
“Waveney continues to be one of the most challenging areas for us in terms of both the level and complexity of need we are seeing. Families are often facing several challenges all at once.
“At the same time, there are limited resources available locally to respond to that level and complexity of need. We are therefore incredibly pleased to have secured this funding, which will help us strengthen our presence in Waveney and ensure more families can access support when they need it.”
Imran Nawaz, Senior Advisor and Community Benefit Fund Manager at Ørsted, said:
"We're pleased that more than £72,000 from this round will support Home-Start's work across Norfolk and Suffolk, alongside 16 other projects addressing a wide range of local priorities. Together, these awards demonstrate the difference community organisations are making every day across the region we operate in."
The Hornsea 3 Community Fund is part of Ørsted's commitment to supporting communities in the areas associated with the Hornsea 3 offshore wind farm. The Fund is administered by GrantScape.
Applications for the next round of the Hornsea 3 Community Fund are now open, with a deadline of 2 December 2026.
For further information and to apply, visit: grantscape.org.uk/fund/hornsea-3-community-fund/
Notes to editors:
The latest awards span a broad range of community priorities. Families experiencing hardship will benefit from food provision and financial inclusion services, while specialist projects will support disabled people, young survivors of sexual abuse, children affected by parental imprisonment and people experiencing poor mental health.
Young people will have opportunities to develop skills through filmmaking, sustainability and event production programmes, while investment in solar energy, community energy and improved sports facilities will help local organisations strengthen their facilities and become more sustainable.
The 18 projects receiving funding in Round 5 are:
- New-U Enterprises Ltd – £4,949 for Craft & Connect upcycling and social sessions in North Norfolk.
- Beresford Road Evangelical Church CIO – £5,000 to provide food for families struggling with household costs.
- Wighton Parish Council – £5,000 towards establishing the Energy Local Greenhoe community energy club.
- The Offshoot Foundation – £4,940 for a free filmmaking workshop for young people in Great Yarmouth.
- Hunstanton & District Foodbank – £25,000 to continue its Financial Inclusion Worker.
- St Andrew the Apostle Church – £8,000 for solar panels and battery storage at its community-used church hall in Holt.
- Home-Start Norfolk – £32,450 to support families with young children in coastal and rural communities.
- Crusaders Rugby Union Football Club Limited – £9,558 towards LED floodlighting to increase training and playing opportunities.
- Ormiston Families – £10,000 for Breaking Barriers, supporting children affected by the imprisonment of a close family member.
- Home-Start Suffolk – £39,727 for home-visiting family support in Lowestoft.
- Social Innovation for All CIC – £8,950 for the Young Green Briton Challenge, helping students learn about sustainability and develop climate action projects.
- 12th Man Mental Health CIC – £36,000 to train Mental Health Champions across coastal communities in Norfolk and Suffolk.
- Brave Futures – £15,130 to provide specialist support for young survivors of sexual abuse in King's Lynn.
- originalprojects – £16,257 to transform St John's Church into an accessible community space for learning, creativity and wellbeing.
- Lowestoft and Waveney Breastfeeding Support – £16,383 to increase specialist staffing capacity across its community support service.
- First Light Festival CIC – £10,075 for its Horizons youth development programme in Lowestoft.
- Disability Advice North East Suffolk – £20,000 towards advice and support for disabled people, people with long-term health conditions and carers.
- Holt Rugby Football Club Limited – £22,000 to install a solar energy system at its clubhouse.
Together, the projects will support people at different stages of life, from babies, children and young families to people experiencing financial hardship, poor mental health or isolation, while creating new opportunities, strengthening community services and investing in a more sustainable future across Norfolk and Suffolk.
