Northern Rock Foundation

Young and old alike in Barrow-In-Furness, will benefit from grants totalling £235,243 as part of the latest grants awards from the Northern Rock Foundation. Drop Zone Café which works with young people in the town has secured support of £76,500 over three years.

Drop Zone, which featured in the television programme ‘The Secret Millionaire’ works with around 1,000 young people a year. As well as offering a place for young people to meet it runs a wide range of activities including the John Muir Award and the Duke of Edinburgh Awards Scheme.

Susan Johnson, the Project Manager at Drop Zone said “Due to the continuing support from the Northern Rock Foundation, Drop Zone Youth Projects can fund the project manager post for a further three years. This will help to sustain a much needed service in the Barrow-In- Furness area; giving young people the opportunity to engage in positive activities to develop new skills and broaden horizons”

A second grant to Age Concern Barrow and District will allow it to employ two specialist welfare benefits and fuel poverty advisors to provide advice to older people who are often the poorest people in our communities

People will receive a benefits check to make sure that they are getting the benefits they are entitled to. Age Concern Barrow and District will also support people to reduce their energy costs by helping them to look at how they can make their homes more energy efficient.

“During a difficult economic time, we will now be able to help older people in Barrow claim all of the money they are entitled to whilst making maximum use of their income and so put more money in their pockets’” said Joanne Smith Deputy Chief Executive Barrow and District Age Concern.

The Northern Rock Foundation made 15 awards totalling well over £1.5 million in its latest round of grant making. A full list of all the grants made is included with this release.

Other awards in Cumbria include £63,709 to Carlisle Mencap to help a group of 30 people with learning difficulties to take part in a leisure activities ranging from fell walking to yoga and £46,000 to Blackwell Sailing. Blackwell Sailing provides people with learning disabilities from across Cumbria with the opportunity to go sailing on Windermere. Last year 176 people with learning disabilities enjoyed sailing sessions during the season which runs between April and October. The Foundation also made a third award of £138,000 over three years to Victim Support to help it provide intensive support to high risk victims of domestic abuse.

Notes to editors

A full list of grants is attached- please contact Hilary Florek for further details 0191 2844054 – 07831 552624 hilary@hilaryflorekpr.co.uk

Northern Rock Foundation is a charity and company limited by guarantee with an independent Board of Trustees that makes all decisions on governance, finance and policy. The Foundation aims to tackle disadvantage and improve quality of life in North East England and Cumbria. The Foundation’s work is delivered by a professional staff team of 12 based in Newcastle upon Tyne.

The Foundation was established when Northern Rock demutualised in 1997. Up to December 2007, the bank gave, by covenant, 5% of its annual pre-tax profits to the Foundation, totalling more than £190 million. The Foundation will receive a minimum of £15m this year from Northern Rock, as part of the arrangement under which the bank was taken into temporary public ownership. Maintaining this arrangement is a condition of any sale of the bank in that period. The Government has asked the bank’s board to identify a viable long-term future for the Foundation.