CHARITIES have received £21,000 in the second wave of grants from Wight AID Foundation.


The organisation launched on September 14 last year and is spearheaded by Geoff Underwood, owner of technology firm IFPL and president of the Chamber of Commerce.

To date Wight AID has granted £74,000 to local causes and another nine grant rounds are planned for this year.

Donations from IFPL, Westridge Limited, Rouse Limited, Glanvilles and the public were recently split between three charities. 

Aspire Ryde & The Isle of Wight Bus Shelter have been granted £10,000 to purchase a minibus.

The vehicle will be used to transport people in need of accommodation to the accommodation centre in Carisbrooke.

The Youth Trust has been granted £3,300 to purchase six Hybrid Laptops, which will help the counsellors to capture more data and reduce the amount of paper documentation.

The laptops will also enable the counsellors to have remote access so they will be able use them to visit clients in their own homes.

UKSA has been granted £7,752 towards its 'Test the Water’ programme which will allow all Isle of Wight Year 6 students to take part in a half-day watersports session which helps develop confidence and self-belief.

Activities will include sailing rafts, learning how to build a boat, and sailing around obstacles. 

Wight AID expects to make the next distribution of funds in February, with a deadline for applications by January 31.

More information about how to support Wight AID, and how to apply for a grant, can be found at www.wightaid.org