London Gatwick Airport has unveiled the latest round of grants by the Gatwick Foundation Fund with £100,000 (US$130,000) awarded to 21 projects across the counties of Kent, Surrey and Sussex.
Projects include a theatre providing interactive experiences for people with dementia and a charity providing performing arts opportunities for adults with learning difficulties.
To date, 100 organizations and more than 50,000 people have benefited from the grants and reported improvements, which cover four main areas: employment, training and skills; families; widening horizons; and elderly people.
The annual £300,000 (US$390,000) fund is awarded in three rounds of grants across the year in partnership with the Community Foundations for Kent, Surrey and Sussex, which manage the program and assess all applications. The grants are evenly distributed across projects in each of the counties, which receive £100,000 (US$130,000) each.
Alison Addy, Gatwick Airport’s head of community engagement, said, “Each of the selected organizations do incredible work in the local communities and it is an important part of the airport’s community engagement strategy to support them with this vital investment.”
Abi Aftalion, fundraising and development manager at St George’s Community Children’s Project, Tunbridge Wells, said, “At St George’s Community Children’s Project, we provide low cost childcare for vulnerable families who need our support.
“We rely on the generosity of donations such as this one from the Gatwick Foundation Fund to help continue providing this vital service in our community.”
The diverse range of projects in the latest round include:
Tunbridge Wells Puppetry Festival CIC, Kent – an award-winning puppetry theatre company will engage with 100 local vulnerable people living with dementia to recall stories and experiences through the medium of shadow puppetry
Bloomin’ Arts, based in Lingfield, Surrey – a charity which provides accessible opportunities for participation and education in performing arts for adults with learning difficulties who live in Surrey
Kangaroos, based in Haywards Heath, Sussex – a charity which provides fun, inclusive social and leisure activities for children and young adults with learning difficulties as well as physical, sensory, medical and behavioral difficulties.