£4 million charity fund launched to bolster financial resilience

Today, Lloyds Banking Group and its four charitable Foundations have launched a new joint Financial Resilience fund, with £4.2 million available to the charity sector to help empower those most in need by gaining confidence and skills to manage their finances, reduce reliance on debt and achieve long-term financial stability.

The creation of the fund follows new research from Lloyds Banking Group and the charitable Foundations which found that in the past three years, 4.3 million individuals have sought assistance from UK charities due to financial hardship.

Charities are a vital resource for the most financially vulnerable

Over two-thirds (69%) of those surveyed said seeking financial advice was the most important reason for seeking support from charities.

The survey, Financial Resilience and the Role of Small Charities, found that over half (51%) of those taking part felt stigma and embarrassment about their finances, which was the main barrier preventing them from seeking support.

The research also showed that charities are the second most trusted source of advice after family.

Charities can, and do, change people’s lives for the better

Of those surveyed, 90% of people who have visited charities and received financial support were satisfied and are significantly more likely to say that they feel more financially stable than before, compared to those who haven’t visited charities. Despite this, charities still face a lack of funding, staff capacity and resource meaning that they feel less able to deliver the services that they would like.

Previous research has shown that the most financially vulnerable in society are more likely to turn to a charity than to their bank for help with their finances .

The Financial Resilience fund will reach charities through the Lloyds Bank Foundation for England and Wales, Lloyds Bank Foundation for the Channel Islands, Bank of Scotland Foundation and Halifax Foundation for Northern Ireland. Each of the four Foundations will receive a portion of the £4.2 million and will make a total of 57 grants which are expected over the next 2-3 years.

The aim of the fund is to reach people in new settings, for example via foodbanks or as part of mental health recovery. The fund will have two distinct strategies of support that charities can access, ‘overcoming setbacks’ for individuals in particular circumstances relating to debt or financial distress and ‘establishing a foothold’ which will encompass more general advice and financial support.

By working with communities, the aim is to help empower people by gaining confidence and skills to manage their finances, reduce reliance on debt and achieve long-term financial stability. Every charity that is supported through the fund will have access to Lloyds Banking Group’s Academy resources and skilled staff as mentors and coaches.

Lloyds Banking Group has a long-standing commitment to supporting the charity sector, having donated £800 million to its charitable Foundations over the last 40 years enabling them to support nearly 70,000 charities across the UK and Channel Islands. The Group has also committed to provide £100 million to the Foundations by 2030.

How the Foundations are making a difference

Lloyds Bank Foundation for England and Wales have provided a £75,000 grant to WODIN (Women and Digital Inclusion), a charity run by and for migrant women in Liverpool, supporting women with digital skills training, alongside practical and emotional support.

In the past 18 months, WODIN has helped 47 women secure paid or voluntary work, provided emergency support to 185 families and delivered food parcels that have reached more than 1,900 people across Merseyside.

Through the Foundation’s Skills Exchange Programme, Lloyds Banking Group colleagues volunteered with WODIN to support the CEO with managing the charity’s finances. The volunteers helped build a fully customised Excel-based cash flow system meaning that WODIN now has a high-level view of their finances and, as a result, the confidence to make strategic decisions.
 

Download the press release