Long-distance train operator CrossCountry has announced the grand totals of funding for local charity, the Cornwall Community Foundation, after a year-long funding period came to an end in April.
The £20,000 donation from the business’ Customer and Community Improvement Fund was matched by the Cornwall Community Foundation, enabling the group to support a wide range of grassroots organisations across Cornwall over the last year.
A total of £40,000 has been distributed to a total of nine charities across the Duchy. Since 2003, the Cornwall Community Foundation has awarded £16 million to over 7000 local projects across Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly.
Earlier in the year, CrossCountry and the Cornwall Community Foundation visited some of the nine projects benefitting from the donation, including Get Together Cornwall which provides support to families impacted by autism and Asperger’s syndrome and MCH Wheal Prosper, a day opportunities centre supporting adults with learning and physical disabilities.
Sarah Gould, regional director for CrossCountry’s West & Wales region, said: “It’s been fantastic to help the Cornwall Community Foundation support such a broad range of projects and initiatives across the Duchy this year.
“As the only national train operator connecting Cornwall to the rest of the country, it’s critical that we support these the communities and economies of the South West and connect them in more ways than just trains.”
The Cornwall Community Foundation, established in 2003, aims to support communities across Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly through awarding small grants to grassroots organisations working against challenges of disadvantage, exclusion and poverty in their communities.
Tamara Sherston-Baker, development director at the Cornwall Community Foundation, said: “It’s been fantastic to work with CrossCountry to help even more projects and initiatives with their critical community work across Cornwall.
“We always value support from businesses and organisations working in Cornwall and we look forward to working closely with CrossCountry again in the future.”
Elsewhere in Cornwall, funding was also allocated to Crimestoppers and social enterprise Unique Voices to raise awareness amongst young people on the risks of trafficking and exploitation, particular around County Lines drug trafficking.
Image credit: CrossCountry
