Great causes in Cumbria are being urged to apply for grants worth thousands of pounds. 

The money is available through the Gannett Foundation, which has already had a significant impact on charities across the county. 

The foundation is the charitable arm of Gannett Co Inc, Parent company of Newsquest Media Group, which owns the News & Star and The Cumberland News.

It offers support to registered charities with projects which take a creative approach to issues such as neighbourhood improvements, economic development, youth enterprise, sport and healthy living, assistance for disadvantaged or disabled people, care of the elderly, environmental conservation, and educational or cultural enrichment. 

At the heart of the grants should be a determination to support projects which bring lasting benefits to communities. 

Last year, Hospice at Home Carlisle and North Lakeland and South Cumbria Carers each received £10,000 from the foundation to support its highly-valued work in the county. The Lake District Calvert Trust, meanwhile, received almost £7,000 to develop an accessible cycling operation to benefit disabled people. 

Vanessa Sims, group editor of Newsquest Cumbria, said: “Our newspapers and websites are at the heart of the communities they serve, so being able to support causes in this way is brilliant. It supports our mission to make a positive difference. 

“Day in, day out we hear tremendous tales of great groups and causes who do so much to make our communities better places in which to live. We’d like to hear about how the foundation might be able to support some of these projects and initiatives.” 

The foundation entertains applications of any size or ambition. Typically its grants are modest sums for practical projects, but it will consider awards to larger projects which deserve its backing. 

It favours schemes that demonstrate good planning, oversight and financial responsibility. 

As a prerequisite, the submission of copies of the charity’s most recent financial accounts are required. 

In addition, any supporting materials and further details concerning the overall aims of the charity should be included with each submission. 

Decisions about funding will be made by trustees based on the evidence submitted. 

Each nomination will be judged on its own merits at the absolute discretion of the trustees, whose decision is final. 

Applications must be submitted on the approved application form, which can be downloaded here: Gannett Foundation UK 2019 Application Form.docx. 

Any bids which do not meet the criteria or fail to follow the scheme’s rules and procedures, which can be found on the application form link, will be rejected. 

Applications can only be accepted on the official application form which should be emailed to alison.sisson@newsquest.co.uk to arrive no later than midday on Friday, October 18. 

Anyone with queries should contact Alison Sisson by emailing alison.sisson@newsquest.co.uk or by calling 01228 612617.