Charities across the UK are being given the power to plough much-needed funding into communities as Nationwide unlocks £7 million to support during the coronavirus pandemic.
As a member-owned organisation, Nationwide is focussed on supporting those who need it most, particularly in challenging times. Communities across the country are facing uncertainty, worry and financial impacts due to the outbreak, while many charities are struggling to raise funds at this time.
The Society has already announced the support it is offering its members, and today extends support to charities across the UK by unlocking around £3 million of funding due to be released to around 100 charities and organisations by the end of April. Unrestricting this funding will enable these charities to decide where and how funding is spent, so they can continue to operate and provide immediate support where help is most needed within their communities.
A further £4 million of grants will be open for applications for charities across the UK in the Summer and will be awarded later this year. Nationwide will be providing individual grants of up to £50,000 per project. For more information visit: https://www.nationwidecommunitygrants.co.uk (This link will open in a new window).
The funding forms part of the Society’s established Community Grant programme, which is allocating more than £22 million of funding across the UK over five years to 2023. Usually funding is restricted to specific projects focused on encouraging local solutions to the national housing crisis - this programme has already supported around 250 projects across the UK with a total of £10 million of funding. All these projects have now had their funding unrestricted.
Kerrie Colford, Social Investment Manager at Nationwide, said: “Coronavirus is bearing a huge financial weight on charities across the UK. We want to do everything we can to support these charities during these unprecedented times. These are charities of all sizes, both large and small, who form an essential part of local communities and enable the basic foundations of society to continue.
“By unlocking this funding, we hope it removes some immediate financial pressures and will allow charities to direct the money according to community needs, using their local knowledge and expertise. We would encourage other organisations to do the same to ensure we are supporting as many people as possible during these difficult times.”
Rosemary Macdonald, Interim CEO, UK Community Foundations, said: “Nationwide is the first business in our grant portfolio to do this and their support for charities during this uncertain time is admirable. Many of the charities that will benefit from this are small charities that really know their local communities but will be impacted financially as a result of coronavirus. They can now use this money more flexibly to ensure charity workers are paid so they can continue to provide support for the vulnerable, for example.”
