March 2020 marked the start of the most challenging global crisis in modern times. With so many of our residents already experiencing hardship, disproportionately affected by poverty levels even before Coronavirus, we knew that getting additional financial support for our community services was critical.
Our primary aim was to support the work of local charitable organisations delivering frontline services for the elderly and most vulnerable. The Emergency Fund prioritised getting financial support for food delivery, telephone befriending and wellbeing services. Due to our knowledge of the East End and our expertise with grant-making, we were the chosen partner to distribute funding from the national appeal led by the National Emergencies Trust. Between March 2020 and the end of February 2021, we awarded £1,798,064 through 262 grants with over 90,000 East End residents being directly helped.
