The Earls Court Development Company awards grants to eighteen local organisations as part of their annual £180,000 Community Fund

• In its second round of funding ECDC has awarded eighteen local organisations grants from its annual Community Fund
• The Fund aims to support the local community in and around the Earl’s Court area
• These grants will build upon the help ECDC has provided to the community to date and will allow local organisations to deliver projects and ensure local groups can continue to provide longer term support for the community

The Earls Court Development Company has today announced that eighteen local charities and organisations are to receive grants from the Earls Court Community Fund.

The total value of the Earls Court Community Fund is £180,000 per year and the Fund aims to support the local community in and around the Earls Court site, in the Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea and the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham.

The organisations awarded grants today are dedicated to supporting individuals in the local community, including children and young people, disabled and vulnerable individuals, homeless people and rough sleepers, displaced women and refugees, and old people. Each organisation is committed to tackling issues through education, theatre, sports, wellbeing support groups and much more.  

ECDC received nearly 40 applications with just under £500,000 worth of requests which were assessed by an independent panel, recruited through an open process and comprised of Rebekah Paczek, Director of Public Affairs and Community Relations at ECDC, alongside community stakeholders from both LBHF and RBKC.

Since acquiring the Earls Court site in 2019, ECDC has committed to making a positive contribution to the local community. The Earls Court Community Fund has already supported local organisations in its first round of funding, which included events, performing arts organisations, children’s holiday activities and workshops, in addition to sporting activities and volunteering opportunities to support vulnerable families, and rough sleepers.

Recent analysis of the impact of the Earls Court Community Fund in 2021 has found that close to 11,000 people have been supported by the Fund so far, providing over 14,000 meals to people who need them, more than 900 1-to-1 support sessions and supporting close to 200 rough sleepers or people at risk of homelessness in the local area.

The second round of the Fund will build upon the help ECDC has provided to the community to date which includes ongoing support to organisations such as Dads House, London Sports Trust and Earls Court Film Festival, as well as new organisations. 

Speaking about the announcement, Chief Executive of The Earls Court Development Company, Rob Heasman, said:

“As a local business, The Earls Court Development Company is proud to play a role in our community. Over the last year, we have seen the incredible impact that organisations have had, through the grant they received from the Earls Court Community Fund. We are therefore thrilled to be able to award another eighteen grants, so that these organisations can continue to support our local communities through the mediums of sport, art, culture and many others.

Over the next year, we look forward to working with these groups, as well as our partners, to continue to deliver real difference to our local communities.”

The eighteen organisations that successfully applied for grants for funding in 2022 are:

• 10^th Fulham Scout Group – To provide an enhanced programme of activities for young people in all sections (Beavers, Cubs, Scouts, Explorers) and training of volunteers
• Action on Disability – To expand Action on Disability's support activities, promoting disabled people to live independently and be confident citizens in Earls Court
• Barons Court Project - For the Project's morning drop-in service which supports people sleeping rough or at risk of homelessness in Hammersmith and Fulham and the surrounding areas
• Burnt Orange Theatre – To support the group’s operations for the 2022/2023 academic year, including youth-led theatre production courses and school holiday programmes
• Community Education Forum – To provide mentoring, academic and pastoral support for children and young people
• Doorstep Library – To support the library’s weekly visits to 60 children aged 0-11 from 30 families on the Clem Atlee Estate
• Earl’s Court Community Trust – To provide an 8-piece band for the 2023 summer play
• Earls Court Youth Club – To provide activities which support families that are experiencing hardship by providing meals and running cooking workshops
• EQUAL PEOPLE mencap – To offer vulnerable individuals a regular weekly space for 40 weeks a year to come together to experience music and dance
• Finborough Theatre – For Finborough Theatre's September 2022 live season, which aims to deliver a full programme
• FOR WOMEN CIC – To give displaced women support, including delivering activities in Ukrainian and Russian to support refugees from the war in Ukraine
• Minaret Community Centre – To support the Somali and West African community located in Earls Court by delivering wellbeing support groups, mental health first aid training, drop-in counselling, women support groups and signposting services
• Open Age – To engage older people and tackle loneliness and isolation in venues across the Earls Court opportunity area
• Response Community Projects – To provide a volunteer at the centre to support the Project’s activities, including sessions for refugees, asylum seekers, older people and those in vulnerable positions
• Solidarity Sports – To support the Family Den and International Food Night programmes which support local families, carers and children and young people
• St Andrew’s Church, Fulham Fields – To support the Youth Club with activities including crafts, poetry and specialist football coaching
• St Cuthbert’s Centre – To support the Centre’s work to tackle food poverty and isolation by providing a nutritious, and free, 3-course restaurant quality meal to the hungry
• London Limited – To support the Discover Your Earls Court workshops which aim to empower local people to learn more about the history of the local area