In the first round of Grants for Good in 2022, we are delighted to share the five finalists who have shared £10,000 following a vote by John Good Group employees.
We received over 400 submissions from various small charities and projects, so it was incredibly difficult for the panel to choose just five. However, the five finalists demonstrated that they have excellent leadership and that a small grant will go a long way to helping their work.
The winners are:
Creative Packs Cancer Charity - £3,500 Grant for Good
Charlotte Murphy created creative Packs Cancer Charity during the lockdown of 2020. It aims to provide Creative Packs to young cancer patients in hospitals who face long periods of isolation due to their treatment. Crafts are a great way to keep your mind entertained and focused on something fun, so Charlotte started making creative packs for patients, and they have been a great success! So far, they have supported over 200 young cancer patients across teenage cancer units.
"It means so much to me to know this mission has been recognised and that we can support more teenage cancer patients. The funds will help us create and deliver more creative packs; we want to be able to achieve what we did last year and more! The funds will help buy items for the creative packs and scale the initiative across more Teenage Cancer Trust Units. We have heard from hospitals that they really struggle to finance arts and crafts, and the donations they usually receive are for younger children, but not teenagers. We're here to change this."
Our Only World - £2,500 Grant for Good
Our Only World is a charity passionate about the fight against plastic, protecting our seas and marine conservation education. Inspired by Living Sea Walls Australia, who were finalists in last year’s Earthshot Prize, Our Only World’s latest project is to retrofit living ocean walls in Plymouth Harbour adjacent to the National Aquarium to stimulate marine abundance and biodiversity.
"One thing that the pandemic has taught us is that anything is possible when passionate people come together. Small actions like this project, when multiplied, can make a change and a positive difference to our oceans. Our Only World is a not for profit registered charity, we are all volunteers, and hence our overheads are minimal. However, we are passionate about protecting our oceans for future generations. Every penny of your donation will go towards purchasing and securing the living wall on Plymouth Harbour. Thank you so much for your support."
www.ouronlyworld.org.uk
Make a Medic – £2,000 Grant for Good
Make a Medic is a charity created by junior doctors in the UK to support medical education and public health initiatives in developing countries. The ethos of Make a Medic is to make more medics abroad and improve health outcomes within their communities.
I am incredibly humbled to be shortlisted for this funding opportunity. As a small scale charity run solely by volunteers, the gifting of even a small amount of money can go a very long way. We're currently developing a medical resource component to our website, which will be our primary source of income once launched. However, this means that we will encounter a prolonged period of time during which we are focusing on resource development rather than fundraising initiatives. This funding will have a profound knock-on effect that will enable us to implement our latest project and make a difference to mothers and babies in Sierra Leone. Thank you very much for this opportunity.
https://www.makeamedic.org/
The BioSmart Initiative – £1,000 Grant for Good
The Biosmart Initiative is a student-run and funded social enterprise that aims to alleviate fuel poverty through both environmentally and culturally sustainable means. As a collective, they create and commercialise Biochar, which is a sustainable alternative to charcoal using agricultural waste from the respective local areas in Kadzinuni, Kenya, Zanzibar and Tanzania that goes on to either be sold on or used as fuel. Not only is it better for the environment, but it also creates sustainable incomes for local communities.
The BioSmart Initiative is committed to its values of environmental and cultural sustainability. We are at a critical stage in our project expansion, readjusting to working in a post-COVID world. This grant is fundamental to jumpstart our project back into operating, as we can gather necessary information from our Kenyan and Tanzanian partners so that our Exeter-based team can continue to make both informed and exciting entrepreneurial decisions in the months to come. Thank you so much for shortlisting our project; it means the world.
https://www.biosmartinitiative.co.uk/
The Clothing Bank – £1,000 Grant for Good
The Clothing Bank was set up in January 2020 when Sally and Susan realised people were struggling to clothe themselves and didn’t know where to go for help. Two years later, they now have 80 drop-off points around Yorkshire where they collect pre-loved clothing that is sorted and given to people in need.
It is absolutely amazing to be shortlisted to receive a Grants for Good. Thank you for seeing what we are achieving and can achieve in the future. With your funding, we can support more people and post items out to those further afield, further growing the clothing bank community.
https://theclothingbank.org.uk/
It has been a pleasure to get to know the people behind these fantastic initiatives, and we look forward to seeing how their projects and charities develop in the future.
The Matthew Good Foundation has now donated £40,000 through its Grants for Good programme launched in 2021 and will donate a further £30,000 in 2022. To find out more and apply, visit: https://www.matthewgoodfoundation.org/grantsforgood.
