Early Diagnosis with the Voluntary and Community Sector
Cancer Screening Partnership Fund
The Cancer-Focused Community Outreach Fund aims to support voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) organisations across Devon, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly to deliver innovative engagement activities that increase awareness of, and participation in, cancer screening programmes.
The fund is designed to help address health inequalities by supporting targeted, community-led approaches that engage underserved populations and improve access to screening. We encourage creative and innovative initiatives that respond to the specific needs of local communities and help reduce barriers to participation.
This year, a key priority of the fund is partnership working within the VCSE sector. We are particularly interested in applications that demonstrate meaningful collaboration between organisations, combining skills, knowledge and community reach to deliver greater impact and improve outcomes for local populations.
All applications need to cover at least one aspect of the following:
Cancer Screening Attendance
Improve cancer screening knowledge, coverage among specific communities through activities such as screening workshops, outreach events and communications.
The projects could cover any or all of the below cancer screening programmes:
- Breast
- Cervical
- Bowel
Applications are now open! The closing dates for applications is Friday 25th September. We will be in touch regarding the outcome of your application after this.
FAQ's and Additional Updates
For further information on the fund please read our FAQ's found here.
If you would like to talk about this opportunity with someone on the team please contact peninsula.ca@nhs.net and put 'VCSE Cancer focused Community Outreach Fund' in the header of your email and include which county you are based in.
Work From Previous Funds
The Cancer-focused Community Outreach fund went live in October 2025 and any community group based in Devon, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly and serving the population were eligible to apply for the funding as long as they could attribute the work to providing outcomes for the below focused areas.
Cancer Prevention
We looked for projects that could help change behaviours and encourage healthy lifestyles for the local community.
The project could focus on any cancer which falls under the following areas in the body:
It needed to include messaging around the risks of developing these cancers and how people can make changes to reduce this risk.
We wanted these projects to be able to engage with specific groups and communities to reduce barriers faced when they engage with healthcare. We wanted to empower people with knowledge and bring cancer into the conversation so that it loses its stigma.
We were looking for anything that could spread education, awareness and engagement. This was ultimately about trying to change behaviours so that people reduce their risks of developing cancer in the future. We wanted to raise awareness around these cancer types so that more people are aware of their bodies and pick up any changes/ risks earlier.
Cancer Screening Attendance
Improve cancer screening knowledge, coverage among specific Devon communities through activities such as screening workshops, outreach events and communications.
The projects could cover any of the below cancer screening programmes:
- Breast
- Cervical
- Bowel
Our Projects
We are working in collaboration with
