We are pleased to announce a £400,000 donation from Morgan Stanley which will go towards supporting London’s community response to COVID-19. The grant will focus on supporting organisations that are providing specialist relief to some of London’s most vulnerable people in boroughs where COVID-19 is having a disproportionate impact on BAME communities.
In the first 100 days of lockdown, LCF distributed over £4M worth of funding to help tackle COVID-19, with £1.3M committed to providing food and emergency supplies. This funding was distributed through the London Community Response portal, a collaboration of over 60 funders in London and managed by London Funders to provide emergency and response funding during the coronavirus crisis through one easy access point.
The grant from Morgan Stanley will also be distributed through the London Community Response portal and will support local charities to provide food and emergency supplies; legal, housing and employment advice; mental health and domestic abuse support services, among other necessities, to BAME communities, including supporting BAME-led charities and community groups.
Our chief executive, Kate Markey, said:
Thank you to Morgan Stanley for this generous donation towards supporting London’s grassroots organisations during the COVID pandemic. The speed, agility and responsiveness of small organisations to meet the emergency has been inspirational but the challenge facing them, and communities they serve, is immense. These vital funds will contribute significantly to supporting charitable organisations tackling the social and economic fall-out from the crisis.
Clare Woodman, Head of Morgan Stanley EMEA commented:
Morgan Stanley is incredibly proud to be supporting LCF and the vital community organisations they work with. It is extremely important to ensure that ongoing relief is available to the most vulnerable in our communities, especially those who are struggling with the economic and health crisis in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
This grant is part of Morgan Stanley’s $25 Million commitment to charities addressing the pandemic. Previously, as part of Morgan Stanley’s global COVID-19 relief response, the Firm provided additional grants in EMEA and collaborated with charities addressing the crisis to provide equipment and support for hospitals, medical staff and vulnerable families across the region.
The Firm also launched the Morgan Stanley COVID-19 Hunger Relief Campaign, which incentivised employees globally to contribute to local feeding programmes. Morgan Stanley employees in London raised over £370,000, including a Firm match, for The Felix Project to tackle escalating food poverty in London.