More than £25,000 raised by islanders for Guernsey’s Social Investment Fund’s COVID-19 Community Charity Appeal is being donated to charities, after the first invitation for grant applications. Four grants have been agreed by the SIF board.
The largest grant of the four sees £8,624 donated to Bright Beginnings to contribute towards salary costs so key staff can be retained and continue their work supporting families through both group and one-on-one sessions.
The Lihou Trust will receive a grant of £7,000 to go towards the salary costs of the Lihou Warden. The Trust, which provides educational and recreational opportunities for children and adults, has had to cancel planned stays on the island and has seen a significant drop in its normal income because of the pandemic.
A grant of £5,000 has been agreed for Les Cotils which has been supporting some of the families worst affected by the crisis through its ‘Food for Families Project’. 80 families are now being supported, receiving deliveries of home cooked meals. The grant will go towards food for the project.
Another grant of £5,000 has been made to the Stay Connected project which has partnered with a large number of third sector, businesses and groups locally to provide devices, wi-fi and data for older Islanders or those with underlying health conditions who are shielding or self-isolating. Over 200 devices have been used to keep family and friends connected during the pandemic. The project is co-ordinated by We All Matter, Eh? (Guernsey Disability Alliance) on behalf of all parties.
Chair of the Social Investment Fund Jurat Stephen Jones, OBE said:
“Each of these charities and projects meets the aims of our Appeal, which is to support those who are actively helping to respond to the pandemic, or who have found funding for their essential services severely restricted because of it. We have received several applications from charities and will be awarding more grants very soon. And of course, we’re still welcoming donations to the Appeal which has now raised more than £144,000 – the more donations we receive, the better we are able to assist those charities supporting our Bailiwick community.”
Details of how to donate, can be found here: https://covid19.gov.gg/support/appeals
Charities are able to apply for funding by emailing Sadie.SiviterdePaucar@gov.gg
