Foyle Foundation award £200k grant to Cornwall Community Foundation

As the Foyle Foundation prepares to close after 25 years of grant-making, it has announced a final £2.2 million for community foundations across the UK and Northern Ireland. This included a £200,000 grant specifically for Cornwall Community Foundation (CCF).

CCF will use the funding to reach the people and projectsA piece of work that delivers an output. facing the greatest pressures, from families struggling with rising living costs, to isolated older residents, to young people in need of safe spaces and opportunities. This funding will make a real difference.

CCF support a wide plethora of organisations across Cornwall addressing varying issues affecting the county. Some organisations that have previously been supported include:

St Austell Community Kitchen (STAK) who provide a safe and welcoming environment for the vulnerable, needy and homeless within the community. Thanks to CCF’s funding the Kitchen was able to open 6 days per week, serving 4000 affordable meals annually, as well as providing courses, clubs, signposting, and friendship.

Penhaligon’s Friends provide bereavement support to children, young people and their families throughout Cornwall for almost twenty years. Funding from CCF has enabled them to run additional monthly sessions to support more young people across the county.

CCF have also supported Black Voices Cornwall with costs relating to their yearly Celebration of Culture Event which celebrates diversity and culture in Cornwall. They are dedicated to improving the lives of local people experiencing isolation, prejudice or discrimination because of their ethnicity. Using education, advocacy, and celebration, they are working on their vision of an actively anti-racist Cornwall.

Commenting on the grant, Tamas Haydu, CEO of CCF, said:
“We are incredibly grateful to the Foyle Foundation for this generous funding. It will make a real difference to communities across Cornwall. This funding will help us to support grassroots organisationsGroups of people coming together on a local level to address an issue. and charities strengthening our communities and reducing poverty and isolation.”

Over the last 25 years, the Foyle Foundation has distributed more than £185 million, including nearly £16 million in small community grants. These smaller grants have been a lifeline for local charities, often helping them survive when larger funders are absent.

This final grant reflects the Foundation’s long-term philosophy: moving from national philanthropy to local action, handing resources directly to those best placed to make a tangible difference. For Cornwall, it means more support for the charities and community groups that form the backbone of everyday life – the people who truly hold the county together.

Take a look at some of the other projects CCF have recently supported here.