TWO charities that work in Reading and Wokingham have received donations of £1,000 each from a national fund.
Specialist insurance firm Benefact Group is giving the cash as part of its annual Movement for Good awards.
They invited the public to nominate good causes and the Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust Charity, one of the largest general hospital foundation trusts providing care services for Berkshire West, and The Link Visiting Scheme, an award-winning charity dedicated to reducing loneliness, are two of 150 charities announced in the first round of the £1m fund.
Marjie Walker, CE of the Link Visiting Scheme, said: “For 25 years, The Link Visiting Scheme has brought vital, life-enhancing social connections to older people and volunteers in the Wokingham Borough. Social connections are key to our well-being and having something fun in the diary to look forward to can make all the difference.
“This grant will be a big help towards our Community Kitchen project which brings together Link Friends and volunteers of all ages to prepare, cook and eat delicious food together on a Sunday afternoon once a month.”
More than 11,000 charitable causes in the UK and Ireland received votes, with 3,250 of them from Berkshire, from 135,000 nominations.
The 150 winning charities were picked at random, with a further 150 winners to be selected in September.
Further gifts will be awarded throughout the year.
Since the awards began, more than 1.6million nominations have been received resulting in more than 2,200 charities benefitting from valuable donations.
This year, 420 charities will be awarded donations, while 40 good causes will receive £5,000 via special grants throughout the year, aimed at helping charities in specific sectors.
Winners will be drawn at random and the more times a charity is nominated the more chance it has of being selected. Further gifts totalling £500,000 will also be donated in larger amounts later this year.
Mark Hews, group chief executive of Benefact Group, said: “We would like to thank every single person who took the time to nominate a good cause as part of our Movement for Good Awards.
“Benefact Group is the third largest corporate donor in the UK and has an ambition to be the biggest.
“Owned by a charity, all of its available profits go to good causes, and the more the Group grows, the more the Group can give.
“We know that £1,000 can make a huge difference to the incredible work that charities do and we’re looking forward to seeing how this financial boost will change lives for the better.”
To find out how to support the Movement for Good Awards and to nominate a cause, log on to: www.movementforgood.com
