NatWest Bank gave six London based community organisations a share of the bank’s £2.5m Skills & Opportunities Fund to help the organisations at an event on 31st May. Community projects ranging from the performing arts, construction, Play work, career pathways support, protecting London’s wild spaces, and even a recreation of the Great Fire of London were among the finalists which received the the fund. At the recently held Asian Voice Charity Awards 2016, NatWest won the Excellence in CSR award for this Fund.
Artichoke is a charity working with artists to create extraordinary outdoor events that appeal to the widest possible audience. London’s Burning, marking the 350th anniversary of the Great Fire of London, will transform the lives of a large group of young Londoners aged between 18-24 years old. Chain Reaction, a dynamic award-winning organisation that uses theatre, media and music to inspire and educate people about the issues that really affect them. Their project Make Your Mark is a creative employability programme that will work with deprived 13-19 year olds from Barking & Dagenham borough, helping them tackle barriers to employment.
Construction Youth Trust enables young people who have faced difficulties in their lives training and employment opportunities in the construction sector. Funding will be used to develop new courses in bricklaying, plastering, plumbing, painting, tiling and carpentry, delivered from its Bermondsey training centre. Hackney Play Association is a specialist Play work training centre in East London. The Fund will help the association plans to deliver a 15 month training programme for 200 disadvantaged people from East London through at least 40 training sessions.
London Wildlife Trust is the only charity dedicated to protecting the capital's wild spaces Over the next 18 months, the Trust’s Wild Talent project will provide paid traineeships to 13 participants to enter the environmental conservation sector. Tower Hamlets Education Business Partnership is the leading education charity that bridges the gap between students and the world of work in Tower Hamlets. Its Pathways to Success programme, designed to give 2,000 young people information, advice and skills to make informed choices about their future, will benefit from the fund.
The Skills & Opportunities Fund provides grants of up to £35,000 to non-profit organisations across UK and Ireland. By the end of 2016 the Fund is expected to reach over 50,000 people, helping to build stronger communities. The next round of funding opens in August 2016. To learn more about the Skills & Opportunities Fund and its application criteria, visit http://skillsandopportunitiesfund.natwest.com.
