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News
13th October 2008
New Chair and Trustees for The Nationwide Foundation
John Kingston, director and founder of Venturesome at Charities Aid Foundation (CAF) has been appointed chair of the Nationwide Foundation. Mr Kingston has been a trustee of the Foundation for two years and succeeds Margaret Mayne, former director of finance at the British Council.
He is joined on the board by five new trustees:
- Richard Davies, management board director and head of the Department for Public Services & Performance Welsh Assembly Government;
- Ben Stimson, director of responsibility and reputation at British Sky Broadcasting (Sky);
- Lucy Gampell, outgoing director of Action for Prisoners' Families and vice chair of CLINKS;
- Karen McArthur, a magistrate and board member of Quality Housing Services and previously the senior manager of corporate responsibility at Vodafone Ltd; and
- Dr Michael McCarthy, director of the strategic marketing consultancy Workhouse and author of books on Unemployment; on Child Poverty; and on the Future of the Welfare State.
Mr Kingston said "This is a very exciting time for the Nationwide Foundation as it progresses its commitment of long term, core funding to charities alongside development of a new grant making strategy by the Board. This new strategy focuses on financial inclusion and housing issues. The new trustees bring a wealth of expertise from both fields and will support the Foundation in determining how best to deploy its grants, taking into consideration the activities of government and other funders. We will also look at unmet needs and how to fund in a way which builds the resilience of charities so as to achieve more lasting impacts."
News on the new grant making strategy will be announced in 2009.
6th August 2008
Small Grants Programme’s recent grant awards
In July The Nationwide Foundation made grants totalling £85,133.00 to 18 charities throughout the UK. Grants made include £5,000 to Playtime in Northampton. Playtime works with troubled children using therapeutic play and play therapy to help relieve them of emotional suffering and distress. The grant from The Nationwide Foundation will fund their work with children who are struggling to come to terms the imprisonment of a parent. Their work will help to reduce emotional and behavioural problems.
The Nationwide Foundation’s Small Grants Programme makes grants to small and medium sized charities which work within the Foundation’s funding themes – currently these themes are to support work in the areas of domestic violence, support for prisoners’ families and the rehabilitation of young offenders. Grants of up to £5,000 are made every second month throughout the year.
7th March 2008
New research published on non-financial support for charities
In 2007, the Nationwide Foundation, together with the Abbey Charitable Trust and Volunteering England undertook a piece of research into how well charities and businesses work together and which helped identify how businesses can better support charities. It is hoped that this research and some of its recommendations will be taken further by Volunteering England.
More information about our research is available here
2nd November 2007
Nationwide Foundation’s 10th Anniversary
Today The Nationwide Foundation is celebrating its tenth anniversary. Over the past decade, the Foundation has supported local communities and people in need of funding covering areas such as community support, volunteering, prisoners’ families and domestic violence, and has awarded grants totalling £22 million to over 2,300 charities.
In 2006 the Foundation was recognised for its fresh approach to grantmaking when it won the “Grantmaking” category at the Charity Awards. The New Generation Initiative offered core, flexible, long-term funding to five charities working under the overall theme of “parenting”. The Foundation continues to support charities in a way which helps them sustain and develop their good work.
Lisa Parker, chief executive of the Nationwide Foundation, said “We are extremely proud to be celebrating ten years of the Foundation and we are grateful to Nationwide Building Society for supporting us during this time. Over the years we’ve learned a lot as a grant maker and developed strategies in response to feedback from charities telling us what they need.
Our main aim is to help people in need, like victims of domestic violence and families in crisis, and to improve the capacity of charities in the UK through funding vital running costs and offering long-term grants. Most importantly, we empower the charities we fund to work in partnership with each other for mutual benefit. We look forward to continuing working with this approach and maximising the opportunity that funding provided by Nationwide gives us.”
Site updated: 13 October 2008