South Yorkshire charity celebrates share of £1million fund

Barnsley Youth Choir provides outstanding choral training to over 450 young people aged 4-24 years old. They seek to inspire and change lives through music and provide life changing opportunities for those involved. They work hard to ensure that their provision remains inclusive and accessible for all, and their satellite Children’s Choir network is designed to support engagement in areas that require significant travel times into the centre.

The £1,000 donation made as part of the Movement for Good Awards will help provide financial support for costs associated with expanding their activities for children aged 7-12 years old into areas of high deprivation in the South of Barnsley. The new Children's Choir South will provide world-class opportunities for children in some of the most deprived areas in the borough.

Mat Wright, MBE, Artistic Director of Barnsley Youth Choir has spoken out following the overwhelming support from the public, “We are thrilled to receive this funding which will support the development of our new Children's Choir South - serving the communities in the South of Barnsley and ensuring all children have access to the very highest levels of vocal training, regardless of circumstances."

Benefact Group’s Movement for Good Awards is giving away over £1million to charities across the year and invites members of the public to nominate causes close to their hearts. 150 awards of £1,000 have been donated to charities across the UK and Ireland. Further winners will be revealed later in the year and South Yorkshire residents are encouraged to keep nominating by visiting https://movementforgood.com/.

Mark Hews, Group Chief Executive at Benefact Group, said: “We would like to thank every single person who took the time to nominate a good cause as part of our Movement for Good Awards. Benefact Group is a family of award-winning specialist financial services companies and the third largest corporate donor to charity in the UK. Owned by a charity ourselves, charitable giving is at the heart of what we do. All of our available profits go to good causes and the more the Group grows, the more the Group can give.

“We are delighted to be able to donate over £1million to good causes each year through our Movement for Good Awards and are grateful to all our supporters, including the customers of the trusted insurer, Ecclesiastical, and the responsible and sustainable asset manager, EdenTree. We know that £1,000 can make a huge difference to the incredible work that charities do and we’re looking forward to seeing how this financial boost will change lives for the better.”

Benefact Group has donated over £200million to charitable causes since 2014 and last year was recognised as the third biggest corporate giver in the UK1. The organisation aims to reach £250million in donations by 2025.

Movement for Good is funded by EIO plc, part of the Benefact Group.