The Battersea Power Station Foundation, which was set up to support sustainable community development in London boroughs, yesterday officially launched, with the intention of granting £1m in its first year.
The Battersea Power Station Foundation (BPS Foundation) was set up by the Battersea Power Station shareholders, to ensure that the communities surrounding the former power station have access to a new source of funding.
Since the beginning of the year, the BPS Foundation has committed £478,766 of funds in the local boroughs of Wansdsworth and Lambeth. It anticipates that up to £1m will have been granted over the course of the Foundation’s first year, and that close to £2m will be granted in 2017.
The BPS Foundation, which registered with the Charity Commission in April 2015, has set up two grant-making funds – the Spring Fund and the Evolve Fund. The Spring Fund has been designed to assist Wandsworth and Lambeth community groups with their immediate work. It is currently open for applications for grants of up to £5,000 per organisation, per annum, with funding decisions made throughout the year on a regular basis.
The Evolve Fund, which will grant the majority of money and by invitation only, is expected to make its first investments towards the end of 2016. This fund has been set up to make proactive investments over a longer time-frame to “further assist Lambeth and Wandsworth communities to thrive”. This may involve granting money to a wider geographical reach, but their work must bring practical benefits to Lambeth and Wandsworth.
Lord Strathclyde, the foundation’s chair, said: “One of the founding principles in the development of Battersea Power Station to ensure that the quality of life is a hugely significant step for the shareholders and a commitment from them to make this principle a reality.”
One of the first grants made by the BPS Foundation was of £100,000 to the Battersea Arts Centre over one year, to tackle the challenges associated with the fire destroyed the Grand Hall last year.
More information on the two grant funds is available here.
