Funding from Kent Community Foundation has allowed charities and community groups to spread a little Christmas cheer.
Experienced grant-makers Kent Community Foundation has awarded £3.8 million in funding to charities across the county this year. This Christmas their vital funding will help many charitable organisations spread some Christmas cheer.
Two groups that successfully applied for funding are, Tonbridge Lions who wanted to give food vouchers to needy families and Friends for Families who sought to buy presents for children who might otherwise have nothing to open on Christmas Day.
Tonbridge Lions who support local charities, good causes and disadvantaged individuals, applied for funding to purchase supermarket food vouchers. They were awarded £2,000 from the Gatwick Foundation Fund, one of over 100 philanthropic funds that Kent Community Foundation administer.
The supermarket vouchers will be used to provide a better Christmas for vulnerable families and older adults.
Friends for Families, who provide direct, practical assistance to people who have been identified by Children’s Services as needing help, was awarded £2,000 from the Golding Family Fund. This grant will help disadvantaged families with Christmas presents for children within Sevenoaks District Council and Dartford Council.
Natalie Smith, Director of Grants and Impact and Deputy Chief Executive said, “2024 has been a very difficult year for many across the county and we are so pleased that we have been able to support many Christmas projects, including those from Tonbridge Lions and Friends for Families, to make Christmas a little more festive.”
To learn more about the impact that Kent Community Foundation’s funding has made over the year visit https://bit.ly/KCF-ImpactReport23-24
To contact Kent Community Foundation about funding for charities and community groups email admin@kentcf.org.uk or visit www.kentcf.org.uk/funding
In the financial period 2023 -2024 Kent Community Foundation awarded £3,808,955 million in 798 grants to organisations and individuals across Kent and Medway.
About Tonbridge Lions
Tonbridge Lions was the first Lions club to be formed in the UK in 1949 and is one of the largest clubs in the country. They support local charities, good causes and disadvantaged individuals.
About Friends for Families
Friends for Families help families facing financial hardship. They provide direct, practical assistance to people who have been identified by Children’s Services as needing help which can’t be provided by central or local government.
About Kent Community Foundation
Experienced grant-maker Kent Community Foundation is the organisation behind the organisations and has been finding, funding, and supporting some of the smallest voluntary groups in the county for over twenty three years. In this time, it has distributed £60 million to support thousands of small charities and deserving causes where a modest sum of money can make a significant impact.
Kent Community Foundation is part of a UK wide accredited network of forty-seven Community Foundations who are committed to improving the lives of local people and communities, particularly the most vulnerable, isolated, and disadvantaged by matching those who want to help, with those who need the help.
Responsible for more than one hundred philanthropic funds, Kent Community Foundation is unrivalled in its knowledge of local causes and assists individuals, families, and businesses who want to help, to establish and administer their own charitable funds.
Kent Community Foundation funding priorities –
- Children, Young People & Families
Supporting disadvantaged children and young people’s physical and mental health, encouraging positive choices and staying safe. - Vulnerable Adults
Helping those who may need extra care dealing with challenging issues or those at risk of social exclusion or discrimination.
3. Elderly and Isolated
Enabling elderly adults to stay well, healthy, independent and free from social isolation.
4. Employability, Skills & Enterprise
Creating opportunities to develop skills and confidence and have a positive impact in areas and groups of people with high unemployment.
5. Environment
Encouraging community action to improve and protect local spaces with support sustainable ways of living.
