Forty-six community projects supported through Lower Thames Crossing Community Fund

A therapeutic gardening programme in Essex and an intergenerational tapestry project in Kent, are among 46 community projects receiving support through the Lower Thames Crossing Community Fund. 

The Community Fund is part of an almost £2 million in programme supporting local projects during construction. Over seven funding annual funding rounds, projects will help develop skills and employment, improve mental health and wellbeing and help people feel more connected to their local areas.

Trust Links, an Essex-based charity that helps reduce isolation and improve wellbeing through nature-based activities, has been awarded £10,000 to create a new community garden in South Ockendon.

The garden will give residents the opportunity to learn practical gardening skills, grow fresh produce and take part in cooking sessions using ingredients harvested from the site. Designed to bring people together, the project will help tackle social isolation and improve physical and mental wellbeing.

Matt King, CEO of Trust Links, said: "We are delighted to receive this funding, enabling us to deliver a programme of nature-based community workshops at the Flowers Estate in South Ockendon. We are finding that the needs around skills development, community connection and mental health have never been greater. Investment such as this is essential to enable the voluntary and community sector to work with residents to improve mental health and wellbeing locally."

Other Essex groups to benefit include Essex and Herts Air Ambulance Trust, which will deliver CPR training across Thurrock and Brentwood and Aveley Men’s Shed, which will purchase tools and equipment to expand woodworking sessions that help combat isolation and loneliness. Thirty-one charities and community groups across Brentwood, Havering and Thurrock have received funding.

In Kent, Stitching Stories, an intergenerational arts and heritage project led by Blueprint Arts Foundation, has secured over £8,000 to create a collaborative tapestry inspired by local histories and experiences. The project coincides with the arrival of the Bayeux Tapestry in Kent this September, the first time it will have returned to the UK in nearly 1,000 years.

Working with community groups of all ages across Gravesham, participants will learn simple textile techniques while creating panels that reflect the identity and stories of their village. The panels will be brought together into a single artwork, exhibited in Gravesend and then toured across the borough.

Other Kent organisations receiving support include Cliffe Woods Community Association, which will use funding to deliver an accessible village fete, Slide Away, which supports bereaved children and young people and Moving Memory Dance Theatre, which will run wellbeing sessions for over‑fifty-fives at Gravesend Library. Fifteen charities and community groups across Kent have been awarded grants.

Katherine Jary, Operations Manager at Slide Away, said: "We are delighted to have received funding from the Lower Thames Crossing Community Fund to support bereaved children referred to us from schools in the Lower Thames region. Our monthly group sessions will provide these children with a safe space where we can help them to understand and express their feelings, hold onto memories and manage on difficult days."

Funding applications in Essex and Kent are assessed by panels made up of representatives from local authorities, community groups, National Highways and regional community foundations, ensuring support is directed to projects that deliver lasting benefits.

Roads and Buses Minister Simon Lightwood said: "The Government's significant investment in the Lower Thames Crossing will help local communities by relieving congestion at Dartford and creating new opportunities, but also by backing local good causes that will make a real difference to people's lives."

Katharina Ferguson, Sustainability and Supply Chain Development Director for the Lower Thames Crossing, said: "We are committed to being a good neighbour and it’s a privilege to be able to support a diverse range of projects, run by dedicated volunteers, who all share the goal of improving local wellbeing."

Further funding opportunities will be available through annual Community Fund rounds during construction, with the next round expected to open in early 2027.

For further information contact us at info@lowerthamescrossing.co.uk or by calling 0300 123 5000. You can also get the latest updates on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and our YouTube channel.