Dad La Soul, a ‘revolutionary grassroots movement’ based in Worthing have been announced as the latest winners of The Boost Drinks ‘Choose Now, Change Live’s’ initiative, a community grant in which the worthy winners receive a share of a £20k fund.
The grant was made available to community groups who are looking for funding to help drive change in their area, community, and field.
After receiving over 300 applications, from sports groups and arts programs to food banks and animal shelters, an independent panel managed to narrow it down to a handful of deserving winners before opening the final decision up to public vote.
Dad la Soul, founded by Dan Flanagan, were crowned the winners of the second round and the grant will go towards their battle against social isolation and loneliness that is felt by millions of dads across the UK every day.
The group was born from the need to support the 6 million dads with school-aged children within the UK, who can feel trapped in small social circles, with a lack of support, and no rulebook on how to be a father.
To date so far, they have produced over 100 events, each one focused on bringing dads and their children together for playdates across the UK. They have 7 active groups who meet regularly for a variety of socials and occasions, and a huge 10,000+ community members both on and offline. All of this is run and managed by a small group of volunteers just wanting to make a change.
With the money awarded by Boost Drinks, Dad La Soul wants to propel their group even further forward into the future, reaching even more dads, with a focus on technology. They are now able to fund software licensing and training in new technologies which will allow them to reach new audiences outside their local community. They are also looking to recruit and train a volunteer coordinator and event session leaders which will support their ambitious growth plans.
On top of this, the group wants to increase their outreach into new and niche communities that they do not yet have regular engagement with. To do this they are now able to recruit a part time partnership manager to allow them to build the relationships they need to reach even further. Not only will this then open up entirely new groups of people to join Dad La Soul, but they will also be supplying them with platform access and training so they can host their own events with the support of the group’s knowledge sharing.
Dan Flanagan, Founder of Dad La Soul spoke about the grant win: “It’s amazing to have been awarded the funds from Boost Drinks. Not only because of the help it will be to growing the organisation, but also to receive the recognition for all of our volunteer’s hard work.
“We know from hard personal experience that ‘Dadulthood’ doesn’t come with a rulebook. With Boost’s amazing support, Dad La Soul will produce a series of innovative online events that brings socially isolated and lonely dads from all over the UK together to meet, create friendships and access mental health support freely while also enjoying live performances from comedians and musicians.”
Adrian Hipkiss, Marketing and International Business Director at Boost Drinks, commented: “Community is at the heart of everything we do, and the CSR campaign is a great example of this. The Choose Now Change Lives campaign is supporting local organisations and groups that benefit their community and have a positive impact on people’s lives, something Boost champions by working with local independent retailers. Eligible groups were able to put forward their own applications to receive a share of a £20,000 grant. I’m very excited to see Dad La Soul continue to grow with the help of Boosts support.”
The ’Choose Now, Change Lives’ scheme has been supported and administrated by Groundwork, a specialist charity working both locally and nationally to transform lives in the UK’s most disadvantaged communities.
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