The Grenfell Tower fire started in the early hours on the 14th June 2017, eventually claiming 72 lives. On the day of the fire, the Evening Standard newspaper and The London Community Foundation launched a fundraising campaign for those affected by the fire.
In the subsequent months, The London Community Foundation received funds from other appeals, including the #Game4Grenfell football match (whose proceeds were added to the Evening Standard Dispossessed Fund), the Artists for Grenfell fundraising single, and the FA Community Shield football match.
Working with our partners, LCF received over 64,000 donations from individuals and businesses, as well as charitable trusts and foundations. In total, £10,138,344 has been raised, including £410,000 from the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Of this, £9,496,366 has been disbursed, leaving £641,978 (see below for Grenfell Children and Young People’s Fund).
Money disbursed
Of the money raised, £8,595,945.22 was made available for survivors who lived in Grenfell Tower, households who lived in Grenfell Walk, and the next of kin of the deceased. Funds for survivors from Grenfell Tower and residents of Grenfell Walk, were distributed via the Rugby Portobello Trust and the National Zakat Foundation. Funds for the next of kin of the deceased, as well as those were hospitalised, were distributed via the London Emergencies Trust.
The funding was made in seven tranches between 19 June 2017 and 16 March 2018.
In addition to payments to surviving households from Grenfell Tower, we gave out £173,035 in grants to local organisations who are working to address needs arising from the fire. The London Community Foundation has also incurred £10,650.60 in payments to third parties in connection with its work on the Artists for Grenfell single, and this amount has been reimbursed from the Artists for Grenfell fund.
The Grenfell Children and Young People’s Fund
In June 2018, the Trustees of The London Community Foundation announced that the remaining funds raised would be used to create a 3-year legacy fund to provide multi-year support charitable organisations helping children and young people affected by the Grenfell Tower tragedy. The Fund, administered by The London Community Foundation, is being distributed over three years and overseen by a panel of local residents, including survivors and young people alongside LCF’s partner, The Evening Standard Dispossessed Fund representatives.
As planned and reported, three annual rounds of the Fund have taken place with £1,339,828 committed.