The Duke of Westminster has become the latest big donor to support the Evening Standard Christmas Appeal with a £100,000 donation from his Westminster Foundation “to help children in need in London have access to healthy food”.
It takes the total raised by our On the Breadline campaign in partnership with The Childhood Trust and Comic Relief to £2.6 million, with the money to be given out in grants to fund organisations helping to relieve pressure on people struggling with the cost of living crisis.
The Duke, owner of the Grosvenor Group and chairman of the Westminster Foundation, said: “We know that a rising number of households across the capital are facing extreme hardship this winter and it will feel even more acute during the school holidays when too many parents are forced to make impossible decisions as they skip meals to cover other financial demands.”
He added: “The Childhood Trust provides a lifeline to so many children and families. We share your ambition to reduce the impact of poverty on young people living in London so I’m delighted to support the On the Breadline campaign of the Evening Standard and Independent in partnership with The Childhood Trust.
“I hope this funding, alongside our grants to other similar charities will help children in London have access to healthy food when they need it most.”
The Westminster Foundation is providing a total of £1 million to charities helping children and their families through the cost-of-living crisis this winter, with a focus on charities fighting food poverty based in Westminster and Chester, where the foundation operates.
The first grant from its emergency fund was a £100,000 donation in October to The Felix Project, London’s largest food redistributor.
