The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) has unveiled details of a £11.59m package of funding to back its launch last year of the Civil Society Covenant to improve charity's relationship with government.

The Local Covenant Partnerships Fund will be used to improve collaboration between charities and councils two deliver local support in areas including mental health, social care, women’s refuges and tackling child poverty.

It will support 15 unnamed areas in England to set up “local covenant partnership agreements”.

“By investing in vital networks of local charities and community organisations, the fund will ensure more people can access services and support that will ease everyday pressures, close to home,” said the DCMS.

“It will be targeted at areas most affected by the cost of living, and will strengthen collaboration between organisations in the civil society sector and local authorities, resulting in more joined-up delivery of preventative and self-directed care to benefit communities and individuals.”

Examples the DCMS gives of successful existing partnerships include the Synergy VCSE Alliance for Mental Health in Sheffield, which involves peer support workers working with the city’s primary care network.

Another is the Greater Manchester Violence Reduction Unit, which mentors primary school pupils to manage their transition to secondary school and reduce the risk of their involvement in the justice system. This involves charities, councils, youth justice professionals, police, health workers and schools.

The DCMS has also launched a searched for an organisation to deliver the Fund. the deadline for applications is 23 February.

“Organisations from the civil society sector with experience in building relationships between multiple stakeholders at a local level and driving investment in the VCSE sector are invited to apply to deliver the fund,” it said.

Civil society minister Stephanie Peacock said: “This £11.59 million investment is about much more than funding, it is about ensuring that whether you are a survivor of domestic abuse, a young person struggling with mental health, or a family facing poverty, you have a support system that is seamless and compassionate.

“By bridging the gap between local councils and the dedicated civil society organisations on the ground, we are turning the principles of our Civil Society Covenant into a daily reality, delivering preventative care that doesn’t just manage crises, but changes lives for the better.”

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