Our Endowment Fund

The purpose of our Endowment Fund is to support children, health and local community projects primarily within the geographic area of Hertfordshire but also Bedfordshire. We’re committed to supporting a diverse variety of applications and each submission is assessed against specific criteria. We analyse the positive and direct impact the project will have for local people and the community. All our grants have been delivered in collaboration with Hertfordshire Community Foundation (HCF), an independent countywide charity that provides grant support to local grassroots organisations and to children and families in crisis by encouraging local philanthropy. HCF helps identify and research suitable projects for us to fund in line with our areas of priority.

We take great pride in the work we do in the local communities, our volunteering for local charities and also the fundraising our colleagues do for causes close to their heart. Take a look below at some of the work we have recently done within our local communities.

View our most recent grants and their story below. 

Rotary Club of Leighton Linslade - Yes We Can

The Rotary Club of Leighton Linslade is a charity fundraising and social club in Leighton Linslade – Bedfordshire and is a member of Rotary International. With a complete focus on supporting the local community, the Club conduct a diverse range of activities from the May Fayre to the annual carol float, as well as delivering the largest inclusive sports program in Bedfordshire – “Yes We Can!” (YWC).

The success of these activities raises significant funds to support the wider local community and international projects.

The YWC program is designed to provide accessible, affordable and sustainable sporting opportunities for those with a disability in Leighton-Linslade, Southwest Bedfordshire and the surrounding areas. Prior to 2017 there was only one sport on offer to those with a disability in Leighton Linslade. Rotary Club wanted to correct this - and launched an initiative to create a centre of excellence for disability sport in the area.

Starting from scratch and against a severe lack of infrastructure, the program has brought together qualified and enthusiastic delivery partners to provide Football, Hockey, Tennis, Sailing and most recently Swimming in the form of the Otters Swimming Club. Since its launch, activities have been free to participants thanks to the numerous partnerships Rotary has created and grants that have been received. In addition, the program now operates an emerging Outreach initiative which is designed to deliver sports into disability groups within their regular meeting environment. YWC strives every day to provide the very best sports opportunities to those who need it most and covers all ages and genders.

Our grant of £3,000 towards the program will allow the Rotary Club to increase and improve their marketing activities. Firstly, this will help to ensure all those with a disability who wish to participate in sport are aware of the opportunities and have access to information about all the various sports on offer. Secondly, this funding will promote the benefits to the wider community including the opportunities that are available to volunteer and coach which exist within the program.

This budget will help increase the number of groups that activities can be delivered to. Here at Harpenden, we are thrilled to be supporting such a fantastic local charity and look forward to seeing the impact that our grant will have.

You can find out more about the programme here: https://leightonlinsladerotary.com/yes-we-can/ 

Citizens Advice - St Albans District Money Management Advice for Young People

Citizens Advice St Albans District is a local registered charity and member of the national Citizens Advice network. The charity aims to improve the lives of local people by providing advice that is free, independent, high quality and confidential on a wide range of issues, including the cost of living, welfare benefits, housing, debt, money management and relationships.

A key area where the charity is looking to increase further guidance and support is towards money management and advice for children and young people across the St Albans District. Helping ensure this demographic are more knowledgeable and confident about how to make the most of their money for now and in the future.

The Children and Young People’s Financial Wellbeing Survey 2022* which was provided by The Money and Pension Service, indicates that there is a need for more support for young people to become more financially literate. Only a third (33%) of children recall learning about money in school and finding it useful, with nearly a quarter (24%) having received key elements of financial education at home. Only 10% report having received education from both, which would indicate a more meaningful financial education.

The findings suggest that children who have received a meaningful financial education are more likely to:

- Feel more confident about managing their money

- Disagree with the statement ‘I feel anxious when thinking about my money’

- Save money more regularly

- Have a bank account that they use

- Have positive attitudes towards money

- Talk about money

- Demonstrate positive day-to-day money management skills, such as shopping around to compare prices and planning ahead for how they will buy the things they need.

To help resolve this issue, the charity is delivering a series of money management workshops. To begin with, these have been delivered in primary schools for years 5 and 6. Long term plans include delivering workshops to older ages, youth groups (e.g. scouts and guides) and vulnerable groups, for example, The Daylight Club for young adults with physical and mental disabilities. These workshops have been so popular and successful that resources are likely to be exhausted with this age group.

The workshops have currently been delivered to 562 pupils, with a further 30 in a remaining scheduled session. There is also a waiting list of schools wanting sessions, therefore further funding is being applied for so that the programme can continue.

The goal of the workshops are to equip children with a small number of key tips and skills to improve their ability to understand money and how to manage it accordingly. The charity’s advisers are extensively trained in money advice, which is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and independently quality assured by the membership association Citizens Advice.

Our £4,718.75 grant will fund a project worker for 2.5 days a month over 9 months to build relationships with schools and groups, develop the delivery programme, coordinate delivery dates, and oversee materials.

The initiative began in July 2024, with workshops scheduled for autumn, spring, and summer terms of 2024-25. The grant will also cover travel expenses for the volunteers delivering the sessions, as well as help with the costs of materials, printing and copying.

As a Society within the financial services industry, we are delighted that our grant will play an important role in helping future generations feel more confident about their relationship with money.

 

Harpenden Connect

Harpenden Connect provides, operates and maintains transport facilities for the people in the AL5 area (Harpenden, Hertfordshire), including those who have the special need of such facilities because they are elderly, on low income, disabled, parents or guardians of young children or those living where there are inadequate public transport facilities.

Harpenden Connect runs 5 days per week, Monday through to Friday. The service is continuing from its foundation in 2017 and is a fully functional and extremely reliable offering to the people of Harpenden. Harpenden Town Council supports the service with a leasing agreement for two modern minibuses with Harpenden Connect Limited.

The service, known as the Harpenden Hopper, covers the length and breadth of the town, encompassing the main outlying residential areas as well as an inner town loop. The route has been designed to bring passengers into the town centre as rapidly as possible, and allows ample time for shopping, or visits to the library or doctors, and then to return home efficiently, too. Harpenden Connect (Harpenden Hopper) also works with Harpenden Town Council and other local charities, for example, the Harpenden Trust and YWAM and other community groups. They provide local transport services to these organisations for ad-hoc social and cultural events.

Some of the positive changes this project makes include:

• Continuing to provide support to vulnerable communities leading towards greater equality within the District
• Enable local people to become involved in community life
• Encourage people from different groups to get on well together
• Reduces the volume of cars within the town, having a positive environmental impact

Our grant of £4,000 will help allow the charity to maintain its reserves. They face rising insurance and maintenance costs, and minibus leasing costs may rise due to future aspirations for replacing one of the minibuses with an electric vehicle. Funds would also then be required to install the necessary charging equipment. We are thrilled to be supporting a charity on our doorstep and look forward to continuing to see the Hopper bus going round town.

 

Youth Talk

Youth Talk are a St Albans based charity that provides confidential counselling/ psychotherapy to 13–25-year-olds who live, work and/ or attend school/college in the District of St Albans and surrounding areas. We have a multi-year commitment with them which allows Youth Talk to provide free counselling, both digitally and in person, to young people with mental health issues.

Since 1997 thousands of young people have trusted Youth Talk to help them. Over the last two years all of our lives have changed. Young people in particular have faced unprecedented demands, disruptions and uncertainties and demand for Youth Talks free, confidential counselling service has reached unprecedented and worrying new heights.

Youth Talk’s vision: Every young person can talk to someone who can help with whatever’s worrying them.

Youth Talk’s mission: To provide the best possible mental health support to young people in St Albans and surrounding areas.

Recently Youth Talk have moved premises which has been an essential part of their five year strategy for growth. This now gives them the space needed to begin to increase the number of young people they can support over the coming years. In 2022, Youth Talk were able to offer over 4,000 counselling sessions to local young people in need of help – but more is needed. The move means that Youth Talk has seen an increase from four to eight individual therapy rooms as well as giving the space to offer group counselling sessions in the future.

Over the next five years, some key areas of focus for Youth Talk are:

1. Growing the service

• Double the total number of counselling sessions offered
• Introduce a group-based counselling provision
• Invest in additional counselling resource & clinical supervisors

2. Extending the reach

• Ensuring support for 17–19-year-olds during any transition period when moving to University
• Focus on encouraging under-represented groups to access the service

3. Platforms for growth

• Ensuring Youth Talk have appropriate provision in IT, clinical systems, supporter database and other necessary infrastructure to support their growth plans
• Invest in fundraising resource in order to significantly grow income
• Invest in and develop a volunteer programme to support volunteer-led fundraising

Over the past two years we have also worked closely with Youth Talk for Mental Health Awareness Weeks in 2022 and 2023. Here we have provided our audience and internal colleagues with content surrounding the importance of mental health for young people, especially in today’s climate where growing up has never been so challenging.

We are delighted to see the growth of Youth Talk over recent years and are proud that our multi-year commitment has contributed towards young people getting the service and support they so desperately need.

To find out more about Youth Talk, you can visit their website here: https://youthtalk.org.uk/