The London Marathon Charitable Trust (The Trust) has today announced new grants totalling £2,059,634 for projects in London, Buckinghamshire and Surrey, taking the total amount of money awarded in The Trust’s history to more than £70 million.
The latest grants include £841,500 toward improvements to The Gloucester Gate Playground in Regents Park and Greenwich Park Playground. These initiatives from The Royal Parks will deliver Play Programmes in partnership with London Play, local schools and partner organisations such as the West Euston Partnership and Greenwich Parents Voice. Both projects will provide exciting and innovative play opportunities that target young people in some of the most deprived local communities in London.
Loyd Grossman, Chairman of The Royal Parks charity, said: “We are absolutely delighted to receive these grants which will allow us to transform play opportunities for children in two of London’s best-loved parks. The benefits of outdoor play and connecting with nature are significant, in particular for those young people who may have limited access to green space.
“This investment will allow the creation of play facilities of the highest quality. Through innovative design, the existing playgrounds will be transformed, catering to visitors of all ages and abilities and encouraging imaginative and social play. We are very grateful to The London Marathon Charitable Trust for making these ambitious plans a reality.”
A £500,000 grant has been awarded to the London Borough Barking & Dagenham toward a new community hub building at Parsloes Park, Dagenham.
The Parklife Project will offer high quality, accessible and affordable football and fitness in an area of London that currently sees low levels of physical activity and associated poor health outcomes.
Councillor Darren Rodwell, Leader of Barking and Dagenham Council, said: “This grant is very welcome news for the residents of Barking and Dagenham as it will make a significant contribution to bringing the park back into the community. Parsloes Park is where the legendary Bobby Moore honed his skills.
Now, with the help of The London Marathon Charitable Trust, the Parklife Project will see massive improvements to toward the football facilities and revitalised spaces for people to play sport.”
The London Borough of Westminster has been awarded a grant of £74,800 to undertake the refurbishment of the Lisson Green Estate Football Pitch. The project will see the resurfacing and re-fencing of the pitch as well as the delivery of physical activity programmes to key target audiences by London Tigers.
Sandra Skeete, Interim Managing Director of CityWest Homes, said: “It is absolutely fantastic to have been awarded this money for the resurfacing of the Lisson Green football pitch. This space is well used by our residents and provides an opportunity for people of all ages to make the most of the outside space and keep active. We want to say a big thank you to The London Marathon Charitable Trust for this donation and for supporting us to help create a place where people are proud to live.”
The full breakdown of grants awarded is as follows:
| LOCATION | GRANTEE | DESCRIPTION | AWARD |
|---|---|---|---|
| Barking & Dagenham | London Borough Barking & Dagenham | Towards a new community hub building at Parsloes Park in Dagenham which will offer high quality, accessible and affordable football and fitness opportunities at the heart of an area which experiences high levels of physical inactivity and associated poor health outcomes. | £500,000.00 |
| Westminster | The Royal Parks | Towards improvements to Gloucester Gate Playground in Regent’s Park in Westminster and the delivery of a Play Programme in partnership with London Play, local schools and partner organisations such as West Euston Partnership. The project will provide exciting and innovative play opportunities which target the most deprived local communities. | £495,000.00 |
| Greenwich | The Royal Parks | Towards improvements to Greenwich Park Playground and the delivery of a Play Programme in partnership with London Play, local schools and partner organisations such as Greenwich Parents Voice. The project will provide exciting and innovative play opportunities which target the most deprived local communities. | £346,500.00 |
| Barking & Dagenham | London Borough Barking & Dagenham | Towards playground improvements, the creation of a family activity area, the installation of outdoor gym equipment and the delivery of an activity programme at Valence Park in Dagenham, in order to offer inclusive and accessible play, physical activity and sporting opportunities suitable for people of all ages and abilities. | £150,000.00 |
| Haringey | London Borough Haringey | Towards the conversion of Markfield Park bowls green in Tottenham into a floodlit Multi-Games Area (MUGA) and the installation of outdoor gym equipment next to the new MUGA which will support year-round sport and physical activity at the site in partnership with local schools, sports clubs and HR Sports Academy. | £95,000.00 |
| Surrey Heath | Windlesham Field Of Remembrance | Towards replacing the community pavilion at Windlesham Field of Remembrance in Windlesham village, Surrey Heath, which will safeguard the future of the site as a community hub for football, cricket, walking, running, cycling and outdoor play as well as a range of indoor activities such as dance, yoga and Pilates. | £95,000.00 |
| Sutton | Purley Sports Club | Towards the development of a new first floor Fitness Room/studio at Purley Sports Club in Sutton which will improve the offer to older people and females in partnership with local personal trainers, physiotherapists and GP surgeries. | £80,000.00 |
| Westminster | London Borough of Westminster | Towards resurfacing and re-fencing the Lisson Green Estate football pitch in Westminster as well as the delivery of physical activity programmes to key target audiences by London Tigers. | £74,800.00 |
| Tower Hamlets | Toynbee Hall | Towards a new Centre for Wellbeing at Toynbee Hall in Whitechapel which will have a major impact on tackling physical inactivity amongst older people in Tower Hamlets by providing a modern, accessible and flexible space suitable for a variety of physical activities. | £73,334.00 |
| Bexley | Dartfordians Community SC | Towards the creation of brand new female and accessible toilet facilities at the Dartfordians Community Sports Club in Bexley. The new facilities will include modern accessible toilets and ladies and mother and baby changing cubicles. The improved facilities will help the Club to grow and develop its female and disability sports provision across multiple sports clubs. | £20,000.00 |
| Aylesbury Vale | Forest Enterprise England | Towards the purchase and installation of a Changing Places facility at Wendover Woods in Aylesbury Vale, which will provide people with moderate or serious personal care needs with the opportunity to access outdoor activity provision including the inclusive trim trail. | £20,000.00 |
| Richmond | London Borough of Richmond upon Thames | Towards outdoor gym and sports equipment at Heathfield Recreation Ground in Richmond to expand the ‘Friendly Parks for All’ initiative which will support older adults and those with dementia to become and remain physically active throughout their senior years. | £20,000.00 |
| Lambeth | Oasis Children’s Venture | Towards the development of a new layout and improved play structure to create a unique sensory playground linking together existing and re-imagined structures at the Oasis Adventure Playground in Lambeth which will maximise opportunities for children to be active together. | £20,000.00 |
| Redbridge | The Old Parkonians Association | Towards the repair of the roof of Old Parkonians Association Pavilion in Redbridge to support improvements to the facility and enable increased usage by local groups and residents. | £20,000.00 |
| Wandsworth | Streatham Park Bowling Club | Towards the renovation of the clubhouse at Streatham Park Bowling Club in Wandsworth to improve insulation and access and provide a welcoming environment to grow membership and community use. | £20,000.00 |
| Wandsworth | Earlsfield Amateur Boxing Club | Towards fitness equipment for the Earlsfield Amateur Boxing Club in Wandsworth which will enable the club to diversify the physical activities offered to support and encourage participation from differing target audiences. | £15,000.00 |
| Morden | London Borough of Merton | Towards a Poolpod at the new Morden Leisure Centre to ensure that people with limited mobility can access the swimming pool. | £15,000.00 |
For more about The London Marathon Charitable Trust visit www.lmct.org.uk.
