The National Express Foundation, a charity that helps disadvantaged young people, has today announced £190,000 in new funding awards to support even more young people in the West Midlands and Kent. This is in addition to funding awards made earlier this year.
In April 2018, the Foundation awarded £242,760 in community grant and bursary funding to 13 community groups across the West Midlands and Kent, as well as one university in Birmingham.
This month, the Foundation is giving additional funding worth £190,000 to 12 community groups and two universities. This new funding will support another 1,500 young people across Birmingham, the Black Country, Coventry and Kent.
It is the first time the National Express Foundation charity has run two funding programmes in any given year and the latest funding brings the 2018 grants total to over £430,000. Since it was launched in 2012 the Foundation funding has supported over 17,500 young people.
The charity’s community group grants are awarded to grass-roots community groups or charities that need financial support with the delivery of positive, developmental activities for youth in the community. The Foundation’s aim is to help others to engage young people and steer them away from becoming involved in anti-social behaviour and crime. Educational grants are awarded to colleges and universities that propose bespoke bursary programmes to support disadvantaged young students with costs during their studies.
Recre8now in Birmingham secured a £10,000 grant to support a programme that will train young ex-offenders aged 15-18 to become community peer mentors. They will develop new skills which enable them to talk to and support other young people who are at risk of offending in their communities and helps give them a sense of purpose as they will be able to help steer other young people away from making the same mistakes they did. After training, each peer mentor will also work with local schools in the community to provide direct support to other young people.
Daniela Varley from Recr8now, said: “We are delighted to have been recognised by National Express Foundation for the work that we do. The funding will help change the lives our young people who have limited opportunities.
“By giving financial support to community organisations, the National Express Foundation is helping us change young people’s lives by empowering them and giving them the skills to fulfil their potential.”
New Park Village Activities Network in Wolverhampton secured a £20,000 grant towards a new project called Future Aspirations. It aims to engage 120 young people aged 14-24 in weekly sessions, providing help and support centred around training and employment choices and opportunities to include apprenticeships, job searching skills, CV writing and interview skills.
William Nicholls MBE, New Park Village Activities Network, said: “We are delighted that the National Express Foundation has been able to provide funding to support us. It will enable us to deliver the skills and specialist advice to young people concerning career opportunities and has the potential to change many young lives in Wolverhampton.”
Opportunities with Experience CIC has secured a £5,000 grant to help tackle the low attainment of women and young mums aged 18-24 who would like a career in the construction industry. Workshops supported by the funding aim to provide a practical and inspiring learning experience for those women and young people who wish to ‘have a go’ at a trade, helping them to develop their skills and confidence before pursuing a career in construction.
Angela Steele, Managing Director, Opportunities with Experience, said: “Receiving this grant from the National Express Foundation helps OWE CIC open once closed doors to young women and mums who are considering becoming qualified tradeswomen in the construction industry. 16 women and young mums will really have opportunities from their experience.”
Anthony Vigor, Chairman of the National Express Foundation, said: “We are very proud of the support we’ve been able to provide for young people in the communities that we serve. This additional £190,000 of National Express Foundation funding means we can help another 1,500 young people through new projects and bursaries. Since we launched in 2012 the Foundation funding has supported over 17,500 young people.
“The purpose of these grants is to help groups to deliver some fantastic activities for young people and also help those who might not otherwise be able to continue with their studies in further and higher education. This additional funding means we can help even more local young people succeed in life.”
£130,000 of funding has been awarded to 12 community groups across Birmingham, the Black Country, Coventry and Kent to support projects over the next 12 to 18 months. Birmingham City University and Coventry University have both secured annual bursaries of £10,000 for the next three years. The bursaries will support students that have a disability, are estranged from their parents, or who have come from care, and therefore may struggle to continue with their studies.
The full list of community groups to benefit from the Foundation’s new funding are:
- Aptitude Organisation CIC, Coventry £10,000
- Coventry Boys and Girls Club, £20,000
- EmployabilityUK, Wolverhampton £10,000
- Friends of Tividale Park, Oldbury £5,000
- Hall Green Youth, Birmingham £5,000
- Handsworth Wood Youth Group, Birmingham £2,500
- Krunch UK, Oldbury £20,000
- New Park Village Activities Network, Wolverhampton £20,000
- Olio Hub, Darlaston £20,000
- Opportunities with Experience CIC, Gravesend £5,000
- Recre8now, Birmingham £5,000
- Swale Gloves Amateur Boxing Club, Sittingbourne £2,500
For full details of the respective projects and bursary programmes supported by Foundation funding this year please visit: www.nationalexpressgroup.com/foundation.
