The Garfield Weston Foundation, which provides grants and support to charities in the North of England, is expanding its awards programme to the Midlands area.
The Weston Charity Awards was set up in 2014 after the Garfield Weston Foundation identified a sharp decline in funding applications that coincided with public sector cuts. The awards offer grant-funding to charities, as well as support from senior business leaders through the charity Pilotlight – which are partners in the awards. In December the awards will be expanding to the Midlands, alongside its work in the North.
Philippa Charles (pictured), director at the Garfield Weston Foundation, said: “Having seen how much charities benefit from this unique blend of funding and strategic business support we are determined to do more over the next two years.
“Building on the success of the Weston Charity Awards in the North of England we now want to reach charities across the Midlands, helping them to achieve their goals and provide more services to communities in need.”
The Weston Charity Awards aims to help small charities with an income of less than £500,000 working in the areas of youth, welfare and community. Winning charities will receive a £5,000 grant and have access to mentoring from a team of senior business leaders through the organisation Pilotlight.
There will be 18 awards in total available across the North, including the Midlands.
Aimed initially at charities in the North of England, the Garfield Weston Foundation is now running the awards in four regions across the UK - the North East, the North, the North West and now the Midlands. It is hoped that eventually the awards will expand further to cover the whole of the country.
North East winner announced
The foundation has also announced its winner for the first ever regional North East award.
Over the last year, six shortlisted charities from across the North East have had access to senior business leaders through Pilotlight, as part of the awards. Horden Youth & Community Centre (HYCC), which helps disadvantaged and isolated families in one of the most deprived areas of the country, was eventually chosen as the first ever regional winner.
Steve Clark, centre manager at HYCC, said: “This has been a game-changing experience for us. I was always the financial worrier – thinking how are we going to pay this core cost? How will we afford that?
“However the business team really supported us in putting a new financial infrastructure and long-term strategy in place. We are now able to expand our services and our income is rising as a result. We are fighting fit and that’s a great feeling.”
Gillian Murray, Pilotlight’s chief executive, said: “We know that many small charities are finding it tough to fund their work and cope with an increase in demand for their services.
"As the spending review ths week looks set to announce more cuts, it’s more important than ever that charities have access to strategic business support. By bringing together charity chief executives with dynamic business leaders we see how charities benefit and become more sustainable as a result.”
