Yesterday, the chancellor announced financial support for charities.
Included in the financial support package is £750 million pounds for frontline charities across the UK – including hospices and those supporting domestic abuse victims, £360 million direct from government departments, £370 million for smaller charities which includes a grant through the National Lottery Community Fund, and the government has promised to match all donations to the National Emergencies Trust that are raised through BBC’s Big Night In fundraiser that will take place on 23/04/2020. They have pledged a minimum of £20 million!
The funding for charities will allow them to continue to provide the vital support to those in need during the coronavirus outbreak. The £360 million that will be allocated by government departments will help to support charities like hospices, St Johns Ambulance, victims charities, vulnerable children charities and Citizens Advice. The various departments will work quickly to identify priority recipients so that the money can start to be received by charities in the coming weeks.
The £370 million grant for the small and medium-sized charities will be providing much needed funding to the charities that are run in local communities. This will allow them to be able to continue services like delivery food, essential medications and providing financial advice.
The grant from the National Lottery Community Fund will need to be applied for and the system for doing that will be operational in a few weeks.
The support announced by the Chancellor is in addition to the other support services that Charities can already access such as deferring VAT payments, paying no business rates for their shops and furloughing staff.
As more information is released, I will blog about it and share it on the FB page.
The information and policies are continually being updated by the government, so I urge you to keep on top of the information by visiting the relevant website for your area.
UK: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-to-employers-and-businesses-about-covid-19/covid-19-support-for-businesses
Scotland: https://www.gov.scot/coronavirus-covid-19/
Wales: https://gov.wales/business-and-employers-coronavirus
Northern Ireland: https://www.nibusinessinfo.co.uk/
I will be trying to keep myself as informed as possible and will share relevant information on my fb business page: https://www.facebook.com/ihelmenterprises/