New Empower grants programme awards £2.1 million to Scottish charities

Bank of Scotland Foundation, an independent charity funded by Lloyds Banking Group, has awarded £2.1 million to 14 Scottish charities through its new multi-year, unrestricted grant programme, Empower, providing them with real security and certainty for the coming years.

Each of the 14 charities has been awarded £150,000 as a three-year, unrestricted grant of £50,000 per year.  Unrestricted funding will enable the charities to allocate resources where they’re needed most, allowing them to respond effectively to the evolving needs of vulnerable people in their communities.   

Donald MacKechnie, Chair of Bank of Scotland Foundation, commented, “Our Empower programme is a testament to our commitment towards making a lasting impact on vulnerable people in Scottish communities. We know from talking to charities that unrestricted funding gives them much greater scope to cover essential costs and deal with challenges quickly and effectively. We are excited to see the positive changes these grants will lead to over the next three years.”

Empower was the first programme to open in February as part of the Foundation's new five-year strategy, "Building a Brighter Future for Scotland," which was unveiled at the beginning of the year. The strategy focuses on supporting small and medium-sized charities that put vulnerable people at the heart of everything they do. Two more multi-year programmes, Energise and Enable, will also launch this year.

“The charities we’re funding are supporting vulnerable people experiencing a range of challenges such as household poverty, family breakdown, alcohol misuse and poor mental health and we’re very proud that our funding will help to improve the quality of life of thousands of vulnerable people across Scotland.”, said Donald.

The 14 charities to be awarded an Empower grant are: -