NHS Charities Together has allocated £148m of the £160m raised through the Covid-19 Urgent Appeal, which is 92.5%.
The remaining £12m will be used for grants and programmes, it said.
Launched in March 2020, the appeal saw hundreds of thousands of people support the charity, including Captain Sir Tom Moore, who raised £39m for it.
NHS Charities Together, supporting a network of over 230 NHS charities, has today released a report sharing insights into the appeal.
75% of projects continue beyond initial funding period
The report looks at the first phase of funding, totalling £42m, and shows that more than 90% of NHS charities surveyed said projects had made a lasting impact.
Three-quarters said projects had continued, either in full or in part, beyond the initial funding period.
Subsequent phases of grant funding included a focus on community partnerships, bridging the gap between the voluntary and community sector and NHS services to tackle the wider determinants of ill health and reduce pressure on services.
The final phase of the grants programme is focused on long-term recovery, with £35m allocated to NHS charities delivering projects that support the long-term health and recovery of NHS staff and volunteers, patients and communities impacted by Covid-19.
Ellie Orton, chief executive of NHS Charities Together, said the thousands of projects “have helped to support the health workforce, recruit volunteers to take pressure off the system, and help patients at an incredibly challenging time in their lives – and our combined impact has extended far beyond the hospital walls”.
“Moving forward, we’re excited to see the continued impact NHS charities can make on the nation’s health – with our focus on transforming patient experience and outcomes, continuing to support workforce wellbeing, and helping people to live well,” she said.
Remaining £12m
A proportion of funds have been reserved to enable the continuity of the charity’s services and activities, including future grantmaking programmes.
An NHS Charities Together spokesperson told Civil Society it is vital that as an organisation it is sustainable and this has included ensuring funds have been available to meet ongoing waves of Covid and to support the NHS through recovery and future challenges.
“We continue to distribute funds from our appeal to meet the ongoing needs of NHS staff and patients, as well as raising further funds that will help the NHS recover from the most challenging time in its history,” they said.
“The scale of funding to date is a fantastic achievement for such a small team, who have worked hard to deliver funds as swiftly as possible while ensuring all grant applications are properly assessed and managed, so donations can get exactly to where they are needed and have the greatest possible impact.”
The charity is evaluating the impact of the funds that have already been granted so that it can make decisions around the best use of the remaining funds.
“This evaluation takes time, and we are using this time to ensure that we understand where our funds have created the best outcomes, and this knowledge will be used to shape future grants,” said the spokesperson.
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