MONEY from NHS Charities Together’s Covid-19 Urgent Appeal, supported by Captain Sir Tom Moore and Premiership footballers, will boost health in Dorset through a partnership between Dorset Community Foundation and Dorset County Hospital Charity.
They have launched NHS Charities Together Covid-19 Community Partnership Grants to recognise the work of grass roots groups who support the health of their communities and alleviate pressure on the NHS.
Groups whose work improves the health of people in communities disproportionately affected by the pandemic can apply for grants of up to £4,000.
To be eligible, applicants must be able to show how their work has a direct positive impact on the NHS while it responds to the additional pressures created by Covid-19. They will also need a referee for the application, who must be an NHS practitioner able to endorse the group’s work and describe how they are supported by it.
The grants will be funded by a proportion of the £150 million raised by NHS Charities Together through its Covid-19 Urgent Appeal launched in March 2020, which was supported by hundreds of thousands of people all over the UK.
Captain Sir Tom Moore raised nearly £40 million, and thousands of other supporters made personal sacrifices to raise hundreds of thousands of pounds in their own ways – from walking or running to sky diving, dancing or baking. Joe Wicks donated proceeds from his efforts to get the nation exercising and Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson coordinated Premier League footballers to fundraise.
Grants issued to member charities through the appeal have provided vital help to patients, staff and volunteers on the frontline, including bereavement support for patients, counselling for staff, research into Long Covid, specialist equipment, and funding for thousands of emergency response volunteers.
Dorset County Hospital Charity, one of NHS Charities Together’s 240 member charities, raises money to enhance patient care supporting the work of the hospital in Dorchester. It funds new equipment, improvements to wards, as well as supporting the welfare and wellbeing of the hospital’s staff.
We are very pleased to be partnering with Dorset Community Foundation who provide expertise in local grant-making, to provide this essential funding to local organisations on behalf of NHS Charities Together
Head of Charity, Simon Pearson said, “The NHS Charities Together Community Partnership grants provide a tremendous opportunity to support voluntary and community groups working with the NHS as our communities in Dorset recover from the pandemic.”
He added: “We are very pleased to be partnering with Dorset Community Foundation who provide expertise in local grant-making, to provide this essential funding to local organisations on behalf of NHS Charities Together.”
The fund opens for applications on September 6 but the partners are advising grants may not be paid until next February due to the time required to review and approve applications.
Dorset Community Foundation director Grant Robson said the opportunity to work with Dorset County Hospital Charity to distribute the money is a huge compliment to its work and knowledge of the area’s voluntary sector.
“We are very proud to be involved in this partnership, which will deliver much-needed funds to grass roots groups who are doing vital work which people don’t realise is doing a huge amount to relieve the workload of the NHS,” he said.
“This money will go a long way to helping them build back from 18 months of rising demand while being unable to raise their own funds. Anyone who isn’t sure if they are eligible can talk to our grants manager Ellie Maguire by emailing grants@dorsetcf.org.”
Find out more about the grants and how to apply here.
