Wiltshire & Swindon Community Foundation has awarded more than £30 million in grants since it was founded in 1975, marking a milestone in its 51-year history of supporting local communities.
The Foundation, established by Lord Joel Joffe and Moyra James, was the first community foundation in Europe. It connects local people, businesses, charitable trusts and public sector partners with charities, community groups and individuals in need of support.
Since its launch, it has awarded more than 10,000 grants to help tackle poverty, improve health and wellbeing, reduce isolation, support people experiencing domestic abuse and create opportunities for children and young people.
The £30 million milestone was reached during this year's University Bursary Programme, which awarded £399,950 to help 71 young people from low-income backgrounds access higher education.
The Foundation also supports young people into vocational training and helps aspiring entrepreneurs take their first steps in business.
Last year alone, it awarded more than £2.5 million through 367 grants, supporting 217 organisations and 150 individuals. More than 83,000 people across Wiltshire and Swindon benefited from the work funded.
Growing Support for Local Communities
The pace of grantmaking has increased significantly over the past decade. It took the Foundation 40 years to award its first £10 million, with the £20 million milestone reached seven years later. The total has now passed £30 million, just over four years after that.
Alongside its grantmaking, the Foundation has built an endowment worth almost £32 million. Much of this is held in funds set up to support particular causes, communities or areas, reflecting the wishes of the people who donated.
The endowment provides a long-term source of support, but the Foundation says continued donations from local people, businesses, charitable trusts and partners remain essential to meeting changing needs across the county.
Joint Chief Executive Vicky Hickey said reaching £30 million was significant, but the real measure of its work was what the funding had made possible for people and communities.
She said local people, businesses and partners had spent more than 50 years choosing to give through the Foundation, which connects their generosity with charities and voluntary groups working within their own communities.
Ms Hickey added that, while the milestone demonstrated what local giving could achieve, there was still much more to do as community needs continued to change.
Wiltshire & Swindon Community Foundation is part of a UK-wide network of 47 accredited community foundations, which have collectively awarded more than £2 billion in grants.
To find out more about the Foundation, including how to donate locally or access funding and support, visit wscf.org.uk.
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