Last week the All England Lawn Tennis Club marked another year of community events and partnerships with the annual Southfields Christmas lights ‘switch on’ by the Chair of the Club, Deborah Jevans.
This is the 12th successive year that the festive event has been supported by the Wimbledon Foundation, the charitable arm of the All England Club and The Championships. During the last 12 months, the Wimbledon Foundation has awarded £1.35 million in grants and donations, supporting charities in the local boroughs of Merton and Wandsworth.
During the last year, in response to the cost of living crisis, the Foundation increased its giving to Merton and Wandsworth’s voluntary sector to help organisations meet the rising demand for their services combined with higher delivery costs. The Foundation upped the funding available through its Community Fund and Get Set, Get Active Fund and extended its support to local homelessness charities including the Wandsworth Winter Night Shelter.
The Foundation also committed more than £180,000 to charity partners directly addressing the crisis and working with those most severely impacted by rising living costs. This included charities running priority services such as hardship support, advice services and food provision as well as projects supporting people with disabilities and long-term health conditions, people from minority communities, older people and low-income families.
In addition, a contribution of £100,000 to St George’s Hospital’s Time for Change Appeal will help expand the paediatric intensive care unit capacity by a third, transform wards into welcoming spaces, and create better facilities for NHS staff.
Beyond financial donations this year, the Foundation:
Worked with nine charities in Merton and Wandsworth to support 43 people from the local community to access jobs at The Championships via its Work at Wimbledon scheme
Introduced 3,500 children at state primary schools in Merton and Wandsworth to tennis via the Wimbledon Junior Tennis Initiative (WJTI)
Donated 5,500 plants from The Championships to local organisations including Age UK Merton, Deen City Farm, Mitcham Town Community Trust and St George’s Hospital.
Donated 7,000 items including towels and clothing to local charities including Age UK Wandsworth, Home-Start Merton, Little Village and Hestia women’s refuge.
An exciting year lies ahead as the Foundation prepares to mark its 10th anniversary. Since 2013, the Foundation has donated more than £17 million to charities and not-for-profit organisations locally, nationally and internationally. It plans to continue to use its resources to strengthen the Merton and Wandsworth’s voluntary sector and looks forward to awarding multi-year grants to local organisations as it reopens its Health & Wellbeing Fund and A Roof for All Homelessness Fund in 2024.
Paige Murphy, Head of the Wimbledon Foundation, said: “As we come together with the community to turn on the Christmas lights, it feels like the right moment to reflect on what we’ve achieved over the last year. 2023 has been a landmark year for us at the Wimbledon Foundation – for the level of donations and grants – but also those impacted by our work.
“The cost of living crisis is having a significant impact on our local community, not only for residents but also for our charity partners facing significant demand for their services combined with rising delivery costs. We are proud to have awarded £1.35m in grants and donations to charities in Merton and Wandsworth and will continue to do all we can to strengthen and support our local community.”
