Charities and Funding
Rap Interiors have transformed many interior workspaces for charities through Kent, and support several charities throughout the year too. While we have refurbished offices for Mind, completed the fit out for CXK and been a part of refurbishing a café for MCSC, we have also helped raise money for Heart of Kent Hospice and Help the Homeless at Christmas.
Many charities are struggling to survive in a normal economy and rely on donations and funds left in wills. During the current COVID-19 pandemic, many charities are seeking help to survive.
We interviewed Dina Hendry from CAF (Charities Aid Foundation), who has some advice and guidance to share with charitable trusts.
Charities need support more than ever for the future to ensure they emerge from this current crisis. They are facing incredible demands for their crucial services.
The CAF Coronavirus Emergency fund has had to pause with demand so high but we hope to grow the fund and reopen it to new applications so keep an eye on our website cafonline.org
Below is a list of some other emergency funds available
CAF Bank
Owned and operated by a charity, CAF Bank is the bank for charities and not-for-profit organisations; dedicated to serving the sector and providing banking services with the benefits you’d want.
For guidance on applying for funds, here is a COVID-19 Toolkit, click to download
More national links can be researched from civilsociety.co.uk here
For information on how to register and set up a new charity the Government rules can be found here
Kent Community Foundation has set up three emergency funds in response to Coronavirus and the threat it poses to the charitable sector and therefore communities across Kent and Medway.
We spoke with their Chief Executive, Josephine McCartney to give us some more details about the funds in place…
We launched our Coronavirus Emergency Fund first to respond quickly to those smaller charities and groups who are supporting the most vulnerable in Kent communities, offering grants of up to £10,000. We have allocated £304,000 in funding so far from a total of £600,000 raised.
In addition to this, we also set up an Emergency Hardship Fund for families in Kent and Medway who have children with complex needs and are facing huge challenges in the wake of Coronavirus. Most recently, we have launched Emergency Bridging Loans for charities, CICs and CIOs who are experiencing an interruption to ‘business-as-usual’ which is resulting in a significant loss in income – these unsecured loans of up to £60,000 is to help bridge that gap in funding as a result of Coronavirus.
Funding so far has been allocated to 82 charities and groups across the county, including foodbanks, community groups providing emergency supplies to vulnerable people unable to leave their homes, domestic abuse services, those requiring PPE equipment and counselling services.
Here is a list of some other emergency funds available
Click the links to be taken to their website for more details
Ian McLintock has also put together a list of more than 90 sources of charity funding, which can be viewed here
The National Lottery Community Fund (NLCF) has started reaching out to grantees, partners, and other vital civil society organisations to understand how it can support communities and the sector during COVID-19. The fund aims to share what it learns over the coming period.
The National Lottery Heritage Fund (NLHF) remains open for its current grant programmes. They are seeking reassure everyone they fund that they will be as flexible and supportive as possible. If you are concerned about the impact of the coronavirus on your heritage project or organisation, please get in touch with your Investment Manager/Senior Investment Manager or speak to the team in your local Area or Country office.
NET has launched a coronavirus fundraising appeal to raise funds for local charities. The British Red Cross will be managing donations. NET will award grants and distribute money raised through a number of charitable organisations, for example local community foundations. It released the first £2.5m to community foundations on 26 March.
They have paused their current programmes for community businesses in order to turn their attention and funding towards the support and advice the sector needs now. In the first instance, they are focusing on getting support to their current grantees across England.
EFF are currently concentrating on supporting the organisations they already fund. They are taking a range of actions including; moving payments and relaxing reporting guidelines, expanding their grants plus programme, and making top-up or emergency grants to those they already fund.
The Gates Foundation and Wellcome Trust are each contributing up to $50m, and the Mastercard Impact Fund is committing up to $25m, to speed the development of and access to therapies. The Covid-19 Therapeutic Accelerator will coordinate research efforts and remove barriers to drug development.
Martin Lewis, the founder of Money Saving Expert, has pledged £1m to support small charities.
In a statement, he said: “To try and help I’m going to release £1m from my personal charity fund to provide grants of £5,000 to £20,000 to small registered charities, or local arms of bigger charities, across the UK – to help with specific UK coronavirus-related poverty relief projects.”
Big Society Capital is planning to launch an emergency loan fund for the sector. Around £100m is expected to be available and more details are still to be announced.
£1m John Lewis and Waitrose
The partnership has launched a £1m community support fund. Waitrose stores will local store will have these funds to support their local area based on the needs of the community.
Emergency funding package and support for funded organisations and individuals announced.
Some of the money raised through Sport Relief 2020 will go to organisations on the frontline. Support for grantees through adapting activities, reviewing timeframes, or re-budgeting remaining funds.
The Indigo Trust is making £2.5m available through emergency grants to help charities respond to the coronavirus emergency. The trust responded to an initiative from charity think tank New Philanthropy Capital (NPC), which has published guidance for philanthropists on how to best support charities through to the crisis.
Housebuilder Redrow’s founder Steve Morgan has also pledged £1m a week to charity, joining the list of celebrities and business people offering their support.
Charities and community groups can apply for individual grants of between £100 and £100,000 as a new foundation, funded by the UK’s biggest gas network Cadent, opens for applications.
It committed £240,000 to the Trussell Trust last week to help food banks respond to challenges presented by Covid-19.
London’s City Hall and City Bridge Trust have each contributed £1m to a fund for London charities affected by coronavirus.
The emergency scheme will be coordinated by London Funders and available to organisations facing immediate financial pressures and uncertainty because of the coronavirus. These include increasing demands for services, higher staff absences, fewer volunteers and lower donations.
Full details of the new emergency support fund and how to apply will be published next week at www.londonfunders.org.uk
Community Foundation Tyne & Wear and Northumberland have launched the Coronavirus Response and Recovery Fund.
Grants will be given to local charities and community organisations across Tyne & Wear and Northumberland in two stages: response, then recovery.
Scottish and Northern Irish funders
A summary of how Scottish funders have responded can be found here. A Covid-19 community fund has also been set up in Northern Ireland.
The Scottish government has released £350m to allay the impact of the virus, including £20m to a third sector resilience fund. This is to help charities with immediate cash flow problems.
