THOUSANDS of pounds of funding has been granted to a York women’s charity to help socially isolated women.

Helen Robinson, community grant support officer with the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, said the foundation’s vision across York and the UK was for a poverty-free country, and to help people living in similar circumstances.

She said the grant of £8,000 would help many women in York.

Helen said: “This particular project we felt met our aims but especially the fact it’s a community based activity aimed at reducing socially isolated women.

“The funding will go towards the cost of outreach worker who’s now in post and is trying to develop relationships with the York Travellers’s Trust. We think that’s a really good way to do it. The approach will also develop relationships with existing voluntary groups.”

Outreach work will be done in areas including Tang Hall, Acomb, The Groves and Walmgate, with an aim to help women in those areas find friends, and also introduce them to services which can help them through Kyra, with legal or financial advice available, as well as social events, projects to build self-confidence, and other services.

Alison Bolton from Kyra said the funding is already in use to allow a dedicated outreach worker

She said: “This hasn’t been done before. Our service user recommendations come from GPs, social workers or word of mouth. We’ve always been reactive because we don’t have the resources to go out and run proactive campaigns.

“Having this dedicated funding will allow us to target communities where we know women are in need of our services, but they might not know about them.

“We have to have a consistent, concerted campaign and having someone employed to do that, she can get some momentum going, and be absolutely focused and dedicated to that.”

Helen said the outreach work would not only help women in York, but would help raise awareness of Kyra as a women’s charity, which is funded through

She said: “I think they are just really good at knowing what the needs of women in York are, and they are helping to improve the lives of women in York.

“I think it’s also really getting the message out that Kyra are there as a service to help socially isolated women in York and engage with them longer term, and encourage them to use their services, such as financial advice, legal advice, and other services Kyra offer.”