£6.5m project to transform West Cumbria wins national award

A project set up to support people in West Cumbria has won a major national award.
Transforming West Cumbria, a five year, 6.5 million pound initiative led by Sellafield Ltd and Cumbria Community Foundation, has been named Social Value Initiative of the Year at the Institute of Economic Development Annual Awards 2025.
The programme was launched in 2020 to focus on the root causes of inequality in some of the area’s most vulnerable communities. Sellafield Ltd and the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority invested 2.2 million pounds to support the work.
Key initiatives included a 1.3 million pound fund for community and voluntary groups, 660,000 pounds to support families, 175,000 pounds for financial education, schemes to encourage young entrepreneurs and efforts to make community involvement a normal part of life for young people.
The award recognises projects that champion social value creation and deliver positive community impact. Judges said the programme had tackled disadvantage across West Cumbria and delivered exceptional results.
iED director and former chair Bev Hurley CBE said the judges viewed Transforming West Cumbria as a benchmark for place based social investment. She said it had generated 19.9 million pounds in social value, empowered communities across generations and provided a model that could be replicated elsewhere.
Tracey West, head of social impact at Sellafield Ltd, said the national recognition was an honour. She said the programme had supported hundreds of organisations and thousands of individuals and families, improving mental health support, financial wellbeing, early years development and more.
Jenny Benson, director of programmes and partnerships at Cumbria Community Foundation, said the collaborative approach had helped ensure the programme stayed responsive to community needs and delivered lasting change. She added that the award reflected the work of everyone involved, from service providers and volunteers to mentors and funders.