Hundreds of Scottish charities, including many in Dundee, are set to lose at least £6m a year in funding with the announcement that the Lloyds TSB Foundation for Scotland is closing its door to new applications for grants for the foreseeable future.Since it was established in 1985, over 12,000 awards have been made to charities, working with disadvantaged communities and people across Scotland, that have benefited from almost £85m disbursed by the Foundation. Recent grants to local charities in Dundee include:
St John's Boomerang Club, Maryfield
£7,000 towards the salary of the IT Tutor for the extended opening hours and
The Brae - Dundee Riding Ability Centre, Broughty Ferry
£6,047 towards the cost of 11 days of strategic planning, fundraising strategy, governance consultancy and on-costs together with organisational review.
Mary Craig, Chief Executive of the Foundation, explains:
“At this time of year, many Scottish charities are waiting to hear what the deadline is for the next round of applications to the Foundation for grants. Unfortunately, as we remain uncertain as to when we will next receive sufficient money under the terms of our covenant to enable us to continue our grant making activities, we felt we couldn’t leave it any longer to alert charities to what is happening as this is as much about their future as it is ours."
“Lloyds Banking Group has put money on the table to get the Foundation through the next few years until the Group returns to profit. That is to be welcomed but, unfortunately, that has come with a significant condition attached that would seek to alter the covenant immediately, leading to future funds reducing from a share of 1% of profits to a share of 0.5% of profits. There are also conditions that we believe would lead to the end of the Foundation’s independent status, such as the Group choosing where the money would go in future.
A petition calling on the prime minister to step in to save the Lloyds TSB Foundation for Scotland has already received over 1,000 signatures.
Sign the petition now.
