In April, the UK government announced £750,000,000 worth of funding for charities across the country to ensure they could continue their vital work through the coronavirus pandemic. With in-person fundraising events postponed or even cancelled due to the COVID-19, the funding was imperative to over 170,000 charities who had experienced a financial shortfall.
There’s information overload and articles everywhere about who got what portion, so we’ve pulled it all together in one place.
So, where has £750,000,000 been spent?
The money was spread out across many different charities, with some being distributed by organisations like the National Lottery Community Fund. The funds largely went to tackle social issues aggravated by the pandemic, such as domestic violence and food insecurity – both of which have increased dramatically.
£200 million was available for small and medium charities and social enterprises in order to maintain and enhance services for vulnerable people affected by the current crisis. Known as the Coronavirus Community Support Fund, this was distributed by the National Lottery Community Fund.
Another £200 million was given to hospices to support their care for patients who would otherwise be in NHS hospitals.
£110 million has been set aside so funding is available for future priorities and opportunities, so there’s a chance to assess the evolving impact on the country’s charities.
£16 million was distributed to charities delivering food to ensure support can get to where it’s needed as quickly as possible. The COVID-19 Food Charity Grant Scheme had £3.45 million available to it from this total, with the aim of providing immediate support to keep food charities open and supporting the vulnerable with a continual supply of nutritious food.
A £14 million fund was launched to fund zoos and aquariums to enable them to cover animals’ imperative food, bedding, and medicines, zookeepers’ wages, electricity and heating, and waste removal.
Domestic abuse survivors and survivors of sexual violence received a £40 million package. The Ministry of Justice supported charities helping victims with £25 million. A yearly £3 million will continue to fund the recruitment of more Independent Sexual Violence Advisors across the country. The Home Office funded community and specialist services for domestic violence victims with £2 million. An emergency safe accommodation support fund for victims and their children received £10 million.
COVID-19 loneliness was tackled with £5 million, giving a vital boost to organisations working to tackle loneliness and help people build social connections.
The Homelessness Response Fund provided £6 million emergency funding to homelessness charities who provide frontline services and have been directly affected by coronavirus.
£1.8 million went to support survivors of modern slavery, helping charities tackle criminal threats towards children and young people during the coronavirus pandemic.
Health charities were allocated £23 million, made up of £4.2 million towards mental health charities, £6.8 million to St. John’s Ambulance, £6 million to Air Ambulances, and £6 million to various health charities.
Citizens Advice received a £15 million boost after experiencing a sudden and explosive demand for advice on a range of different issues, primarily legal and financial. The money will help them boost their capacity for online and phone advice.
Charities offering legal advice during the coronavirus pandemic received £5 million, again increasing provisions for delivering digital and remote advice.
£6 million went towards supporting Armed Forces charities and CICs delivering services to veterans, Armed Forces families and their communities.
£34 million supported charities safeguarding vulnerable children, including those who are critically ill, disabled and leaving care. This funding also helped charities tackle criminal threats towards vulnerable children during the pandemic.
£60 million was given to charities in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales to support communities, wellbeing, third sector resilience, and emergency coronavirus responses.
This list isn’t exhaustive as there’s been various emergency funds and extra grants from banks and building societies, but we hope you’ve found some of the information useful. We can apply for these on your behalf, leaving you to handle more pressing issues in your charity during the coronavirus.
If you’d like our help with bridging financial gaps, calculating next moves and striving forward with confidence after the pandemic is over, get in touch!
Registered provider for the North East Business Support Fund and RTC North.
