Severn Trent has awarded a grant of £63,000 to Staffordshire-based community project, SPLAT Staffordshire CIC, as part of its Community Fund programme. 

SPLAT Staffordshire CIC is a community-focused community interest company that aims to enhance the quality of life of children and young people from disadvantaged backgrounds. 

The group operates play sessions after school and at weekends, offering children a safe place to play, learn and develop through activities including sport, physical games, arts and crafts, and den building. 

The CIC also creates work experience opportunities for young people, helping them to enhance their CVs and boost employability. This includes on-the-job training for unemployed young people aged 17-24 who receive qualifications as Project Workers and deliver inclusive play sessions to children aged 4-12. Through the funding, SPLAT Staffordshire CIC will be able to extend its services to more areas.

Tabby Mansha, Founder and Director of SPLAT Staffordshire, said: “Our supervised, coordinated children’s play sessions create fantastic play-based learning opportunities and can help to significantly improve the mental health and wellbeing of children who take part. This grant will allow us to take our services to more areas, supporting more children and young people.”

Jade Gough, from Severn Trent's Community Fund team, said: “It is fantastic that we have been able to continue to support some truly outstanding community-focused projects such as this. Supporting the communities in which we work is really important for us and we are exceptionally pleased to have been able to contribute to the work that SPLAT delivers to young people in Staffordshire. 

"We are always keen to hear from groups or organisations that are seeking funding for projects that can make a real, tangible difference to their communities and we recommend that they get in touch to see if they can benefit from a share of the Community Fund.”

For more information on the Severn Trent Community Fund and to find out how to make an application visit: https://www.stwater.co.uk/about-us/severn-trent-community-fund/