The Didcot Powerhouse Fund will be inviting applications for its 2024 round of grant giving from December this year. 

The Fund was launched in November 2021 and has since made grants totalling over £175,00 to charities and community organisations in and around Didcot, extending across areas including education, health and mental wellbeing. There were 17 recipients in 2022 and 18 in 2023, with some receiving grants in both years to boost their projects.

Powerhouse chair, Elizabeth Paris said: “Our mission is to ensure that smaller charities and volunteer-led community organisations don’t miss out on grants and we have discovered that some of our grant beneficiaries then build the confidence to reach out for additional grant funding from other sources too.”

One example of a cause that Powerhouse has assisted is new organisation The Cornermen, who reach out to men in the area struggling with mental health challenges. Co-founder Steve James said: “The majority of the 53 users of our service are Didcot-based. Former users of the service are volunteering with us and we have organised several social events together. We have received many new enquiries and hope to extend our support to newcomers in the future.”

The Fund is currently looking for more organisations and people to donate and fundraise. To get in touch and for more information on applying to the Fund, visit: www.didcotpowerhousefund.co.uk