Manchester Airport Community Trust Fund offers grants for Coronavirus support

Organisations supporting communities through the coronavirus lockdown near Manchester Airport can benefit from grants provided by the Airport’s Community Trust Fund.

In response to the social impact of the pandemic, Trustees of Manchester Airport Community Trust Fund have agreed their next round of funding will focus on supporting organisations helping communities through the Covid-19 lockdown.

The Community Trust Fund already supports scores of local groups every year, with grants to improve local communities, funded by an annual contribution from Manchester Airport, and proceeds from noise pollution fines.

Charities or not for profit organisations within a broadly 10-mile radius of the airport can lodge applications from today until a deadline of 26^th May.

A special meeting will be held on 29^th May to consider requests and payment made to successful applications the following week, to ensure their efforts can be supported at the earliest opportunity.

The Community Trust Fund will continue to operate as normal throughout the year, but will prioritise:

• Organisations supporting people who are at high risk from Covid-19
• Organisations supporting communities most likely to face increased demand and challenges as a direct result of Covid-19
• Organisations with high potential to support communities with the direct and indirect impact of Covid-19.

Maximum grants during this special round of funding will be £3,000. Details on how to apply and the full criteria can be found on the community trust fund’s website.

Current chair of Trustees, John Twigg, from MAG, said:

Over the years, the Manchester Airport Community Trust Fund has given more than £3m to support hundreds of projects that have helped improve the lives of our neighbours.

“That will continue to be the case and is all part of the Airport’s wider commitment to enriching the communities it serves through support and volunteering.

“The Coronavirus pandemic is deeply impacting those very same communities as well as being a major challenge for aviation.

“Therefore, the Trustees wanted to find a way to ensure the Community Trust Fund could complement the work that MAG is doing and provide a helping hand to those who are stepping up to support those who most need it at this challenging time.”

The Manchester Airport Community Trust Fund’s Trustees are made up of elected representatives from the communities it serves, including Cheshire East, Manchester, Tameside, Stockport, Trafford, and Cheshire West.