Local charities received a £200,000 boost last night from Harrogate Borough Council.
The council agreed to make a one-off payment for the sum to the Local Fund for the Harrogate District, which was set up in 2018 to encourage long-term, sustainable income for voluntary organisations.
The council currently allocates £30,000 a year to the fund, which it set up in collaboration with Harrogate and District Community Action and Two Ridings Community Foundation.
But at last night’s cabinet meeting, the council agreed to give a one-off lump sum of £200,000, which will be placed into an endowment.
This will replace its £30,000 annual contribution.
Interest from the endowment, along with private donations and contributions from the Local Lotto and dormant trust funds, will be awarded to charities.
The Local Fund’s latest funding round allowed not-for-profit organisations to apply for grants of up to £5,000.
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The council’s £200,000 will be used to attract match funding, with council leader Richard Cooper suggesting this could potentially double its value.
In 2018/19, the Local Fund distributed £70,000 to 23 different projects.
At last night’s meeting, council leader Richard Cooper called the fund a “brilliant initiative”.
He said:
“This is an opportunity to establish a permanent fund for good causes in the Harrogate district.
“We expect to double our money from match funding, so our investment could potentially grow to be £400,000.”
