This report covers the period up to the start of April 2020, a point in time when the UK had just entered the first UK national COVID-19 lockdown. Like many other countries, including many in which the Foundation’s partners operate, the full implications of the pandemic were only just starting to be appreciated. We have also felt a heavy responsibility to ensure that we were able to support our partners and the communities they serve at this time of crisis. As this report sets out, we recognised quickly that we needed to provide additional emergency support to those communities most in need and there are some excellent examples of the impact of those investments. The Foundation also recognised the impact of the pandemic on our charitable partners and was quick to sign up to the London Funders’ commitments to charities affected by COVID-19, including revised project timelines, bringing forward of payments and additional funding to enable partners to move to new modes of delivery.
Notwithstanding the importance of our response to the Coronavirus pandemic, we are proud of the key achievements of the Foundation and its partners in respect of our long-standing priorities.
The report sets out some fantastic examples of the achievements of our partner charities, such as the Fahmida Begum Foundation, The Noor Project, The Prince’s Trust, the East Africa Character Development Trust and the British Asian Trust. The report also covers new partnerships in to which we have entered, particularly those focussed on our Women and Girls priority such as the African Gifted Academy, Home-Start Croydon and Approachable Parenting.