Coventry Building Society Donates £1.6 Million to Coventry Charities and Schools

Charities, schools, and community organizations situated in Coventry are poised to receive £1.6 million in funding from the Coventry Building Society (CBS). A total of up to 126 groups are slated to share these funds, with CBS stating that more than £750,000 is designated for schools and youth charities to bolster literacy and numeracy efforts. Anna Cuskin, the community manager, indicated that CBS selected groups that support young individuals, contribute to enhancing people’s financial resilience, and facilitate connections among older, isolated individuals. St Francis Employability, one of the charities slated to benefit, characterized the financial contribution as “invaluable.” “Our resources are low, and the need is really high,” stated Selina Read from the charity. She elaborated, “So we have lots of vulnerable people coming to see us for lots of different reasons – not being able to eat, struggling with their heating, or just not understanding their bills.“The funding’s allowed us to have staff in place to be able to help tackle some of those really important issues.” Jack Tully, the deputy head of Foxford School in Coventry, remarked that the donation would assist numerous students. He explained, “It gives us the opportunity to do things that we otherwise might not be able to, like supporting students going on extra curricular trips, and giving them those extra opportunities to help them develop as people as well as learners,”. Tully further added, “There’s lots of programmes which we’re looking at which provide support for students with special educational needs, and students with English as a second language.“It’s really easy to see the difference this funding has on individual difference – especially those programmes for disadvantaged students.” The building society also expressed its aim to concentrate on ensuring that as many people as possible are aware of the support services available to them. “We give year-round support in the form of funding, resources, and volunteers, but as we come into the winter months, we know it can be a time where people increasingly turn to their communities for help,” Ms Cuskin commented. She concluded, “We hope our donation not only enables more people to get the support they need, but also that more people hear about the places they can go to if they’re struggling.” Last year, CBS’s total community investment amounted to £3.1 million, delivered through monetary donations, resources, and volunteer hours. For updates, follow BBC Coventry & Warwickshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X, and Instagram. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.