London Gatwick announces over £93,000 donations to regional causes

London Gatwick has donated more than £93,000 to deserving causes throughout the Kent, Sussex and Surrey regions through its Foundation Fund.

A total of 20 deserving groups have been handed a lifeline, which means they can continue to build better communities, support young people and those with additional needs, and improve the health and wellbeing of thousands of people.

Melanie Wrightson, stakeholder engagement manager at London Gatwick, said: “We are so happy to be in a position to help such worthy causes in our community.

“The past few years have been especially difficult for so many of the charities and support organisations that work incredibly hard to help people in need. These financial awards will go a long way to making sure the essential services they provide remain accessible to those that benefit from them the most.”

The organisations that are set to receive these life-changing payouts include:

In Kent, Crossroads Care Kent received £4,000 for respite for unpaid carers, Space 2 Be Me was awarded £4,000 to assist disabled children and their parents in West Kent and The Counselling Centre in Tunbridge Wells received £4,000 towards accessible counselling. Tunbridge Wells Mental Health Resource Limited was awarded £4,000 for supporting individuals with mental health issues and Age UK Tunbridge Wells received £5,000 to prevent isolation and loneliness. Aspens in Tunbridge Wells has been given £5,000 to help run employability sessions for individuals on the autism spectrum and with learning disabilities and Hope Church Tonbridge has received £4,000 funds for its life skills project.

Across Sussex, Broadfield Community Centre in Crawley has received £5,000 to help pay for staff and core costs. Relate West Sussex in Crawley has benefited from £4,700 to provide counselling for couples, individuals, families and children and young people, aged 11 to 19. Crawley Jumma Group now has £555 for a new support group for Asian women and The Springboard Project in Horsham has benefited from £8,486 to increase the capacity of sessions delivered for children and young people aged 6-18 years, with special educational needs and disabilities. People Matter Trust benefited from £6,494 for its jobseekers’ programme in Heathfield.

Engage has received £4,764 which it will use to provide socialisation opportunities for rural older and vulnerable people through the TN22 club and TN22 dementia Plus club, offering carers' respite in the Wealden area. Funding will be used to cover staff, volunteer, venue hire and activities costs.

Roberta Smyth, chair of Engage board of trustees and volunteer said: “The grant from Gatwick Foundation Fund will go a long way in supporting our rural charity in encouraging social interaction and activity for those facing loneliness and isolation and supporting people with memory loss or mild to moderate dementia.

“We would like to thank you for your support for our small charity in helping us to continue this vital work.”

In Surrey, Renewed Hope in Reigate and Banstead obtained £5,000 for a support worker aiding the homeless in East Surrey. Specialist Youth Work secured the same amount for a mobile youth service in multiple locations for those aged 10-25 with special needs.

St John’s School, Dorking, received £5,297 for its Holmwoods Belong Project, Tandridge Voluntary Action was given £5,000 for an older people’s befriending scheme and Relate Mid and East Surrey was awarded £5,000 for subsidised counselling for low-income households, while Bletchingley Skills Centre got £2,539 for skills training for adults with disabilities in Tandridge. Lastly, Caterham Barracks Community Trust now has £4,995 for a food poverty project, offering community meals and cooking lessons.

For more information about the Gatwick Foundation Fund, please go to: https://www.gatwickairport.com/business-community/community/our-support/foundation-fund/.

Ends

Editors notes

About Gatwick Foundation Fund

The Gatwick Foundation Fund is managed by individual Community Foundations for Kent, Sussex and Surrey on behalf of London Gatwick, which oversees the programme and assesses all applications.

Each year, there are three rounds of grants, which are split equally between Sussex, Surrey and Kent.

Since it was founded in 2016, the Gatwick Foundation Fund has made more than £1m in donations, which support local grassroots community and voluntary projects that make a difference to people’s lives and meet local need.

The Gatwick Foundation Fund was suspended in April 2020 due to the pandemic. It operates in Sussex across Crawley, Horsham, Mid Sussex and Wealden, in Surrey across Reigate and Banstead, Tandridge and the Mole Valley area, and in Kent across Tonbridge and Malling, Tunbridge Wells and Sevenoaks.

For more information, visit: https://www.gatwickairport.com/business-community/community/our-support/foundation-fund/.