Photo: the launch of Basketball Northants Carry a Basketball not a Blade campaign, funded by Northamptonshire Community Foundation
Since 1 April 2023, Northamptonshire Community Foundation has awarded over £1 million in grants to local charities and community organisations across the county.
In partnership with the University of Northampton’s Institute for Social Innovation and Impact, Northamptonshire Community Foundation has published the second Northamptonshire Hidden Needs Report.
Last week volunteers from local charities The McCarthy-Dixon Foundation and The Lewis Foundation received Rose of Northamptonshire Awards, for their tireless work and dedication to their local communities. In total, 57 presentations to local unsung heroes will be taking place throughout August and September.
The High Sheriff of Northamptonshire has awarded £10,500 to four local groups, through the Northamptonshire High Sheriff’s Initiative Fund.
The fund is administered by Northamptonshire Community Foundation and has awarded grants to four local community organisations, funding projects set up to bring people across the county closer to their communities. The funding programme awards grants of up to £3,000 to groups doing work to tackle serious youth violence, creating stronger and safer communities and reducing crime and anti-social behaviour.
We have come a long way since our humble beginnings. The first community foundation originated in 1914. It was the brainchild of Cleveland, Ohio lawyer, Frederick Harris Goff, who was concerned about philanthropic gifts which had outlived their original purposes. His idea was to develop charitable endowments that would be flexible enough to respond to changing community needs.
The National Emergencies Trust launched in 2019 as a single, trusted place to donate in the event of a national emergency. Within four hours of a disaster, the Trust will mobilise an emergency fundraising appeal and start working with local funding partners, like community foundations, to distribute funds quickly and fairly, to those most in need.
While on my travels in Chile to visit my family in April 2023, I also had the absolute pleasure of meeting with Matías Sáenz Maritano from Comunidad de Organizaciones Solidarias (COS) and Rodrigo Villar from Centro de Filantropia e Inversiones Sociales (CEFIS).
Tuesday 27th June 2023 saw the official launch of the Northamptonshire Anchor Institutions Network, bringing together organisations who have a significant impact in the county to work together to address important social and economic inequalities to make Northamptonshire a great place for people to live, work and visit.
Northamptonshire Community Foundation has been administering dedicated funds on behalf of KHL Big Local for nine years to support the Hazel Leys and Kingswood Estates in Corby. I went on a walkabout with KHL partner and Community Foundation Ambassador George Hill to reflect on the work that’s been achieved through the fund and some of the ongoing challenges for supporting local neighbourhoods.
Last week, we celebrated a huge milestone: we've awarded over £20 million in grants since the foundation’s inception in 2001!
As part of this weekend’s Coronation celebrations, The Big Help Out will take place on Monday 8th May. This nation-wide initiative will highlight the impact of volunteering, and the importance of giving back to your local community. Residents are being encouraged to sign up and help out in their local communities.
Charities and community groups across Northamptonshire are hosting various activities, from flower festivals to Moses basket-making sessions, to show local residents the great work that’s being done by organisations across the county, and to demonstrate volunteering opportunities on our doorstep.
As the financial year ends, we’re extending a huge, heartfelt thank you to all our donors.
Thanks to you, this has been our biggest grant-making year since Northamptonshire Community Foundation was first established 22 years ago, outside of delivering emergency funds during the Covid-19 pandemic. We’ve awarded over £2.5 million in grants.