11
June
2020
|
15:19
Europe/Amsterdam

Manchester Airport’s Community Trust Fund awards grants to five Wythenshawe groups to support Covid-19 relief efforts

Summary
  • Grants awarded as part of special round of funding to help communities through pandemic.
  •  
  • Activity packs, cooking equipment and pedometers among items that will be bought using Airport cash.
  •  
  • Donations follow volunteer support pledged by furloughed Manchester Airport staff, who have used their free time to help communities.

Five grassroots organisations in Wythenshawe have been awarded grants to support Covid-19 relief efforts by the Manchester Airport Community Trust Fund.

The Fund announced a special round of applications in response to the coronavirus pandemic, and received scores of applications from within a 10 mile radius of the Airport.

Now, trustees have awarded funds to 15 organisations – one-third of which are in neighbouring Wythenshawe.

Barnardos Wythenshawe Centre and the Church of England, Wythenshawe received £2,000 each towards activity packs and other bespoke support for those impacted by lockdown.

Wythenshawe AFC was granted £1,149 towards equipment that will help the team restart training sessions once it is safe to do so.

Among other beneficiaries in Wythenshawe were Benchill Community Centre, which will get £1,220 towards equipment including microwaves and reusable food containers that will allow them to deliver hot meals to those in need.

Wythenshawe Good Neighbours was also awarded £500, some of which will be spent on pedometers to help keep the community active.

Andrew Cowan, Manchester Airport CEO, said: “For more than 20 years, the Community Trust Fund has provided vital support to organisations across the region.

“Wythenshawe is a community on our doorstep and home to a large number of our colleagues, so it is particularly pleasing to be able to support a number of organisations curing these challenging times.”

The Community Trust Fund, which was set up in 1997, usually reviews applications quarterly, but trustees are speeding up the process for the latest applications to ensure the cash reaches affected communities as quickly as possible.

The total figure donated in the special funding round stands at £21,714.68, with the largest approved individual application at £3,000.

Samantha Days, Project Coordinator at Wythenshawe Good Neighbours, said:

Our Covid-19 response has included a weekly knock on the door and a garden gate chat with our older residents. We also deliver an activity pack with a range of resources to keep our group informed, entertained and in touch.

“The funding from the Manchester Airport Community Trust Fund will help us deliver donated cakes safely and the pedometers are part of a scheme to get our older residents fitter and healthier to reintegrate into our social eating programmes, when measures have lifted sufficiently for closer gathering. We’d like to thank all the team at the airport for their generous support during these difficult times.”

The financial support package from the Community Trust Fund follows a major volunteering campaign, led and organised by furloughed Manchester Airport workers.

The group of airport colleagues offered their time and expertise to support Covid-19 afflicted communities through delivering parcels to food banks, receiving phone calls from those who were self-isolating alone, and providing education packs for pupils unable to go to school.

The Community Trust Fund’s board next meets in October and is already welcoming applications for up to £3,000 from locally-based not-for-profit organisations. Details on how to apply and the full criteria can be found at www.manchesterairport.co.uk/community/working-in-our-community/community-trust-fund.

 

Organisation

Amount

Wythenshawe AFC (Manchester)

£1,149.00

Trafford Veterans (Trafford)

£1,500.00

Barnardos Wythenshawe Centre (Manchester)

£2,000.00

Church of England, Wythenshawe (Manchester)

£2,000.00

Wythenshawe Good Neighbours (Manchester)

£500.00

Cherry Tree Project (Stockport)

£1,149.00

Gorton Visual Arts (Manchester)

£500.00

Willow Wood Hospice (Tameside)

£3,000.00

Arty Kind (Stockport)

£500.00

Benchill Community Centre (Manchester)

£1,220.00

Ladybarn Community Hub (Manchester)

£500.00

Stockport Car Scheme (Stockport)

£900.00

Smart Works Greater Manchester (Stockport)

£3,000.00

Stockport Wheelchair Races (Stockport)

£2,596.68

Didsbury Good Neighbours (Manchester)

£1,200.00

 

£21,714.68

 

Wythenshawe: £6,869.00