GSK Community Health programme: supporting small charities tackling health inequalities

The GSK Community Health programme is open to registered charities that are at least a year old, located and working in the UK with a total annual income between £20,000 and £150,000. Up to 10 charities will receive up to £10,000, plus access to training and development valued at £5,000.

Health inequalities are avoidable and systematic differences that include access to health care, quality and experience of care, life expectancy, and wider factors such as environment and housing. There are stark gaps in health between the least and most deprived areas in the UK, with the cost-of-living squeeze and rising poverty also impacting many people’s health.

A considerable amount of work tackling health inequalities is carried out by very small charities working with their communities. These organisations can find it hard to access unrestricted funding and support for their leaders, particularly in the current economic climate which has resulted in huge pressures on funding.

The GSK Community Health programme supports aspirational leaders to develop their organisations to tackle health inequalities. It is designed to run alongside the GSK IMPACT Awards and support the next generation of award winners. We know from our long history with the GSK IMPACT Awards that the combination of funding and leadership support can make a real difference and help a charity realise its ambitions.  

Successful charities 

Our congratulations to the 10 successful organisations selected from almost 230 applications for the GSK Community Health programme.  They each receive a grant and a place on a tailored leadership programme delivered by The King’s Fund.   

The 10 successful charities are:  

• Been There – providing free mental health mentoring to adults in England and Wales with body image issues, including disordered eating.  

• Disability Sport Yorkshire – supporting disabled people to improve their physical and mental health by creating accessible sport, activity programmes and opportunities for skills development and volunteering.  

• Headway Ayrshire – supporting people affected by an acquired brain injury/traumatic head injury across Ayrshire. 

• Lunch Club – tackling food poverty and social isolation in Streatham, South London 

• Nottingham Children Young People and their Families Project – providing tailored support to people facing complex barriers in under resourced areas of Nottingham.  

• Plushealth – providing free, UK-wide online peer support to improve emotional and physical wellbeing for those living with or affected by HIV, empowering them to lead active, healthy lives without stigma or prejudice. 

• Rainbow Parents Carers Forum – a parent led charity providing peer support, advice and information and inclusive activities for families with children who have special educational needs and disabilities in Greater Nottinghamshire and surrounding areas. 

• The Spring Charity – working to improve wellbeing and school readiness and reduce disadvantage for families with children under five in the Northampton area.  

• STAMP Revisited (Mental Health Advocacy Services) - providing an advocacy service in Middlesborough and the surrounding areas to people who have experienced mental health challenges and face multiple disadvantages.  

• Windmill Trust – providing creative therapeutic services for children and young people at risk of long-term mental health issues.