Meet the RG Foundation 2020 Grantees

As countries across the world continue lockdown measures in some shape or form, many people on the fringes of society become more vulnerable to the impact of COVID-19.

Simultaneously, the Black Lives Matter movement, re-ignited by the horrific murder of George Floyd, has galvanised global awareness (and hopefully action) in addressing racial injustice and inequality.

The charities, and community groups at the heart of these issues, and many others, will be crucial in any kind of recovery and progression. In turn, they must continue to fund their operations and service delivery. So the need for funding support has arguably never been bigger.

At the beginning of 2020, RG Foundation opened up a nomination window giving all 420 Reward Gateway employees around the world the opportunity to nominate an organisation for funding. As always, the organisation needed to be related to at least one of our charitable objectives and be delivering services in one of our 4 GEO’s that are making the world a better, fairer, safer and more equal place to work.

As a result of the nominations, we had an incredibly strong selection of applications come in from each country and in March the Foundation’s Trustees had the difficult job of reviewing the applications and deciding which ones to award funding.

In total, just over ￡150,000 in grants were awarded to 8 truly inspirational organisations. 

It gives me great pleasure to introduce you to the 2020 cohort of RG Foundation Grantees...

Centre for Youth (US - $15,000)

For nearly the last 50 years the Center for Youth has been delivering services to help address the complex challenges that young people face every day. Based in Rochester, NY, they are on a mission to partner with young people to help them realise their full potential, by creating opportunities, removing barriers and promoting social justice. 

Their $15,000 grant will help open an “independent living house” which will serve up to 6 young LGBT+ young people who face discrimination, instability and fear. With a disproportionately high level of LGBT+ young people experiencing homelessness in the community, they are vulnerable to trafficking and exploitation. The living house will provide a safe space and support to help young people move forward with their lives with stability and self-sufficiency.

Doc Wayne (US - $10,000)

Doc Wayne is a Boston based, award-winning charity that uses sport and therapy to strengthen at-risk young people. They’ve developed the ‘Chalk Talk’ programme, which engages young people through the power of sport. The majority of Doc Wayne’s students are young people of colour and come from low-income households. Many have been exposed to or are survivors of abuse, community violence, and chronic trauma.

Their $10,000 grant will contribute to the operating costs of Doc Wayne, enabling them to strengthen their capacity to support more students through the Chalk Talk programme.

End Youth Homelessness (UK, ￡18,000)

EYH is a national movement made up of 11 community charities that have joined forces to solve the youth homelessness crisis in the UK. In 2019, over 103,000 young people asked their local authority for help because they were at risk of homelessness. Homelessness has a devastating impact on young people’s lives and can cause severe mental health trauma, gaps in education and effectively being locked out of the employment market.

EHY’s ‘Employability Fund’ enables young people to achieve their potential, whatever their previous education or employment. It provides Employability Coaches to give 1:1 support to those young people who are furthest from the job market. A grant of ￡18,000 will provide at least 16 young people with the support they need to access Education, Employment and Training opportunities, equipping them with the skills required to get into sustainable careers.

 GLAS Foundation (Bulgaria, ￡18,000)

Gays and Lesbians Accepted in Society (GLAS) was founded in Bulgaria in 2014 and has since been at the forefront of the fight for a more equal society. Their Work It OUT platform has been designed for organisations that want to make their workplaces more inclusive and embrace the benefits of diversity.

Through Work It OUT, the dedicated GLAS team hosts virtual and in-person round table discussions and other events for people to learn about the innovative approaches to LGBT inclusion internationally, as well as the challenges to achieving the same levels of LGBT workplace inclusion as in other countries aboard. An ￡18,000 grant is a continuation of support from RG Foundation, to enable the ongoing development and delivery of the Work It OUT programme.

Hope for Justice (UK, ￡20,000)

Modern slavery is a complex issue, with multiple drivers, and it is exhibited through multiple forms of abuse and exploitation. Hope For Justice exist to bring an end to modern slavery by preventing exploitation, rescuing victims, restoring lives, and reforming society. They believe freedom is worth the fight.

People trapped in modern slavery in the UK are subjected to de-humanising conditions. They cannot access their rights and they are subjected to severe mental, physical, emotional and sexual abuse. A ￡20,000 grant towards will help to ensure that Hope For Justice can provide the necessary support to survivors of Modern Slavery in the UK, as they work to get their voices heard and rebuild their lives.

Stonewall (UK, ￡20,000)

Founded in Britain in 1989, Stonewall’s roots are in campaigning for equal rights and treatment of the LGBT+ community. Their primary mission is to achieve acceptance without exception for all LGBT+ people, in the UK and abroad. Until everyone feels free to be who they are, wherever they are, Stonewall’s work is not finished.

Through their ‘Education and Youth’ programme Stonewall works to support LGBT+ children and young people by working with schools, children and young people’s services, and LGBT+ young people themselves. Their ￡20,000 grant will contribute to this programme, helping to create LGBT+ inclusive environments in schools and communities, free from homophobic, biphobic and transphobic bullying, where LGBT+ young people are supported and can thrive.

Radical Recruit (UK, ￡39,689?)

Founded as a CIC (Community Interest Company) in 2019 Radical Recruit bridges the gap between disadvantaged job seekers and the business world. Their innovative, and forward-thinking team employs a values-led approach to sourcing talent and works exclusively with disadvantaged candidates from marginalised communities within London and Greater London. 

 Radical Recruit candidates have enormous potential however the reality is that their potential is too often overlooked by mainstream recruiters because they are viewed through a lens of mistrust; perceived as antisocial or lacking the skills to secure and sustain meaningful paid employment. 

They support people who are (but not limited to):

• from BAME backgrounds
• refugees that have been granted asylum
• young (aged 18 to 25) and not in education, employment or training
• returned veterans
• single parents (mostly mums so far)

With a ￡39,689 grant and a close ongoing partnership, Radical Recruit will be able to scale its operations over the next year and deliver its recruitment services to more people from the disadvantaged and marginalised communities which it serves.

Snowdrop Project (UK, ￡20,000)

Snowdrop Project is a small charity based in the North of England, which provides long term support to empower survivors of human trafficking to move on from their past. They believe in a future free from trafficking.

Survivors of trafficking and modern slavery have endured unimaginable cruelty and exploitation, and without access to continued and long-term support survivors are extremely vulnerable to a host of issues including re-exploitation, homelessness and on-going mental health problems. With a ￡20,000 grant, Snowdrop Project will expand their ‘Caseworker Programme’ enabling their skilled team to work one-to-one with survivors across every aspect of their lives. 

To date, the RG Foundation has contributed more than ￡500,000 to organisations in each of our GEO's that are doing incredible work related to our Mission. We’re incredibly privileged to be able to support such an inspirational selection of organisations and people from around the world.

The next year is going to be challenging in so many ways, but we’re very excited to be able to join forces with these people so that together we can make the world a better, fairer, safer and more equal place to work.