Vital Regeneration is delighted to have been selected as one of the first 18 organisations to receive cash from a £100 million Government fund to help charities cope with the impact of public spending cuts.  The charity is to benefit from a £146,000 grant.

The Transition Fund aims to support charities experiencing loss of local authority funding and to help them prepare for the new opportunities offered by the Government's "Big Society" agenda. 

Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude said: "A key part of the Big Society is encouraging a strong, independent voluntary sector and the one of the best ways to support this is to open up new markets for civil society organisations to deliver public services.

"There will be enormous potential for civil society organisations in the future, but the transition to these new funding streams will not happen overnight.

"The Transition Fund is not intended to be a substitute for public funding cuts … but it will help to ensure that valuable civil society organisations will have some support from the state prior to the opening up of public sector markets."

Angela McConville, Vital Regeneration’s Chief Executive said: “We are delighted to have been selected for a Transition Fund award.  At Vital we have ambitious plans to position ourselves to compete in the future public services market place; the Transition Fund will support our plans to reengineer our programme delivery, ensuring we are as impactful and as efficient as we can be at a time when there is ever increasing need for our services in the communities we serve.  The tough economic climate does offer opportunities and with the support of the Transition Fund we feel confident of being able to seize these.

The funds will be administered by the Big Lottery Fund. 

Notes to editors

Vital Regeneration is an award-winning charity delivering employment, learning and sustainability services in some of London’s most disadvantaged communities.  Based in the City of Westminster, it employs 37 staff and over 300 volunteers, and annual income reported in 2009 was £1.2 million. 

Over 60% of the charity’s total income comes from delivery of public services/statutory funding and the Transition Fund grant will assist in managing the impact of expected reductions or changes in statutory funding in 2011-12.

Vital Regeneration has received a Transition Fund grant of £146,000 for the 2011-12 period.