CHARITIES in York and North Yorkshire have been urged to apply for extra funding support worth thousands of pounds.

The Weston Charity Awards, which launched in 2014, support small organisations across the north of England which help the disadvantaged and people in need.

Under the awards, which are funded by The Garfield Weston Foundation, winning charities will receive £6,500 in funding in 2017, and be given access to senior business leaders through Pilotlight, which will help them plan for success.

One of the former winners of the funding is York homeless charity SASH.

Peter Robinson, director of SASH, said: “Winning a Weston Charity Award came at a crucial time in SASH’s development as we scaled up our activities in response to growing demand from vulnerable young people across North and East Yorkshire.

“Our team of experienced mentors and the excellent facilitation by Pilotlight helped us to maintain focus on our key challenges during a period of rapid growth and change. In particular we found that the constructive criticism from the team made sure that we made decisions based on sound reasoning. We now feel well-equipped to meet the next set of challenges that are already coming over the horizon.”

Philippa Charles, director of the Garfield Weston Foundation, said: “We are thrilled to once again open the Weston Charity Awards for submissions in the North Yorkshire area."

“Previous winners have moved forward with a clearer sense of direction and confidence in the future, at a time when the sector is facing some instability. We hope that their success will inspire more charities to enter this year and take full advantage of the support that is on offer as an Award winner.”

The awards are open to charities working in youth, welfare and community. The deadline is January 13. For details visit westoncharityawards.org