Three charities based in London have shared a £30,000 windfall as part of Ecclesiastical Insurance Group’s annual Movement for Good awards.
The Foundling Museum, Bethnal Green Nature Reserve Trust and Hillingdon Women’s Centre are three of 301 charities chosen by a panel of judges that will benefit from the money.
The fund will allow The Foundling Museum, which works to improve the life chances of disadvantaged children and young people, to kick-start its new project, The Breakout Room – an online creative platform to help underrepresented, care-experienced young people build on the skills needed for employment in the creative industries.
Bethnal Green Nature Reserve Trust will be using the donation to transform part of its land into a food growing hub, which will provide much needed easy access to fresh food whilst bringing the local community together to reduce isolation and poor mental health.
Hillingdon Women’s Centre, which provides vital support to women in crisis, will be widening its outreach service to deprived areas within Hillingdon to aid women in their wellbeing, employment and relationships and help them to overcome barriers in their lives.
Each of the £10,000 awards are designed to help charities make a real difference in their communities. Applications were assessed against four key areas; impact and effectiveness, sustainability, innovation, and care and compassion.
Mark Hews, Group CEO of Ecclesiastical, said: “At Ecclesiastical we believe business should be a force for good. Charitable causes need sustained support and a sense of financial stability. Through the second phase of our Movement for Good awards we are actively championing innovation, giving charities the backing they need to propel their plans forward and turn creative ideas into practical solutions that benefit society. We know that £10,000 can make a huge difference to the incredible work that charities do and we’re looking forward to seeing how this financial boost will change lives for the better.”
“Ecclesiastical, the fourth largest corporate donor in the UK, is a unique financial services group. We are owned by a charity which means all available profits can be given to the good causes that are so important to our customers. As a company whose purpose is to contribute to the greater good of society, charitable giving is at the heart of our business.”
Vicky Lechuga, Hillingdon Women’s Centre Manager, said: “We are really grateful for the grant awarded by the Movement for Good awards, it will be of so much help to continue supporting vulnerable women in Hillingdon. It will translate directly into women achieving their goals and living healthier and safer lives.”
For the third year running, the awards, set up by specialist insurer Ecclesiastical, will see a total of £1million go to charities across the UK. An amazing 210,000 people around the UK supported the Movement for Good awards during its first phase earlier this year, with over 13,000 charitable causes up and down the country receiving votes. The 500 winning charities were picked at random from those nominated and were awarded £1,000 each.
Phase two saw over 1,000 project submissions for the £10,000 awards. Following a review of all the applications, a panel of judges made their final selection of the 30 winning projects. The remaining money will be awarded at a later date.
