FRESH projects and ideas to encourage the take up of smear tests are being called for with a cashpot of £1,000 to fund them.

Community Voluntary Services Tendring (CVST) is looking for cervical screening awareness and promotion ideas for a special project.

Funded by the North East Essex CCG, applications are invited to apply for up to £1,000 for projects or ideas to both raise awareness of cervical screening and increase promotion in Tendring.

Yvette Wetton, strategic partnerships manager at CVST, said: “With this week being Cervical Cancer Prevention Week there is no better time to kick-start a new project promoting cervical screening tests.

“We are looking for applications that are able to raise awareness and increase promotion of cervical screening services in the Tendring area, including encouraging the take up of smear tests.

“We are particularly looking to aim awareness at those aged 25 to 29, those over 25 that have never had a smear test and women over 50 as well as ethnic minority groups, those with learning disabilities, low socio-economic groups, and lesbian and bi-sexual women.”

Cervical screening is a free health test available on the NHS as part of the national cervical screening programme.

It helps prevent cervical cancer by checking for a virus called high-risk HPV and cervical cell changes.

But one in three women and people with a cervix don’t attend screening.

Yvette added: “While cervical screening is not a test for cancer it is a vital part of protecting against cervical cancer and prevents more than seven in ten diagnoses.

“We hope by funding projects we can help encourage more women and people with a cervix to attend cervical screening.”

Application forms are available from https://forms.office.com/r/qHmhUUQpNK.

For more information on the funding available email funding@cvstendring.org.uk.