London Marathon Foundation awards more than £2.4 million to inspire activity across the capital

Among the grants is £80,000 to Carney’s Community, Wandsworth. The grant will help fund the renovation of the community centre, forming part of a larger project which will transform the centre into a community hub for Battersea. Inclusive cycling charity Wheels for Wellbeing has also received £80,000, to support its delivery of inclusive cycling for people with disabilities in Croydon (see full list of 43 projects below). 

The Foundation’s Active Spaces Fund has awarded a total of £2.4 million to 43 projects across 18 London boroughs this year. Projects funded cover a wide range of sports and physical activities – from therapeutic yoga for young people, to tai chi for older people, horse riding for people with disabilities, and East Asian dance classes. 

Creating opportunities for more children and young people and marginalised groups and communities to lead active and healthy lives is at the heart of the Foundation’s work. Active Spaces funds projects in London that improve spaces and facilities and help the least active children, young people and underserved groups and communities to experience the transformative benefits of physical activity.  

Nick Bitel, CEO of the London Marathon Group, said: “We are proud to support the people and organisations doing amazing work in the community day after day through the London Marathon Foundation’s Active Spaces funding. It’s been great to see the impact projects we fund have on the communities they serve. We look forward to continuing to work with organisations that reach those people and communities who stand to benefit most from getting active.” 

George Turner, Co-founder and CEO of Carney's Community, a youth charity based in Wandsworth, said: “The grant from the London Marathon Foundation will support our young people who are neurodiverse, have disabilities, face poverty, are in the care system, have been excluded from school, involved in the criminal justice system or many other factors limiting their chances in life. The grant means an investment in our facilities, increasing our capacity to meet growing demand, and providing a suitable space to encourage more young people to get involved in boxing, cycling and exercises, whilst also receiving the mentoring support they need.” 

Rebecca Walker, Director of CARIS Families, a charity supporting families in Camden through - and beyond - homelessness, said: “Our grant from the London Marathon Foundation has enabled us to convert a dark, concrete undercroft bordering our hostel-based Kids Club into a vibrant playground for the homeless children living in the hostel. The space now has soft, colourful playground flooring, an amazing range of physical play equipment and the children are working with a street artist to design a mural to surround the space. Our new play space means that children living in very cramped, one-room units with their families are able to get the physical exercise they need to help them meet their milestones and to get opportunities for stimulation and socialisation that their accommodation deprives them of.” 

The 43 projects are (listed by London borough):