The Vodafone UK Foundation (VUKF) today confirmed funding totalling £240,851 for the Black Training and Enterprise Group (BTEG), Elizabeth FitzRoy Support, Get Connected and Sustrans.

Sarah Shillito, Head of The Vodafone UK Foundation, said: 'These organisations all have the potential to create long lasting change. We are really proud to be involved in such forward thinking projects and via technology, we anticipate making a positive impact on 16 to 25-year-olds in this country.”

The announcement reinforces VUKF’s commitment to support young people at risk of exclusion, increasing their access to information and opportunities through the innovative use of technology.  The VUKF has agreed funding of:

• £75,080 over two years for the Black Training and Enterprise Group, which focuses on employment, economic regeneration, education and enterprise issues - to put in place a communications programme for advising and sending relevant information to black and minority ethnic organisations via a text/email alert service.
  
• £10,000 for Elizabeth FitzRoy Support, which supports people with learning disabilities. The funding will enhance the functionality of their ‘sensory world’ website, designed to make learning fun and stimulating. Users accessing the site will be able to make use of tools such as a weekly budget planner and learn about health and safety in the kitchen. The site, still in its final stages of development, will be officially launched on 3rd May 2006.
  
• £32,101 for Sustrans, a sustainable transport charity - to pilot the use of Blackberry devices and 3G data cards to help measure the increased efficiencies of staff travelling by cycle to work. The pilot will also monitor and evaluate the impact of new technologies on time, budget and the environment.
  
• £123,670 over three years for Get Connected, a confidential telephone and e-mail helpline for young people to help them to conduct website development, advertising and review branding.

Ends
For further information contact:
Vicky Argles, The Forster Company
E-mail: vicky@forster.co.uk
For media enquiries, please call 020 7403 2230

Interviews:
If you are interested in carrying out an interview, please contact Vicky Argles at the details above.

Interviews are available with:

• Sarah Shillito, Head of The Vodafone UK Foundation
• Jeremy Crook, BTEC
• Anna Richardson, Elizabeth FitzRoy
• Gill Harrison, Sustrans
• Chloe Darlington, Get Connected
  

Notes to Editors:

The Vodafone UK Foundation

The Vodafone UK Foundation is a registered charity.  It is one of 19 local country Foundations funded by The Vodafone Group Foundation and also receives donations from Vodafone UK Limited.

The Vodafone UK Foundation helps 16-25 year olds in the UK to live fuller lives, primarily by increasing their access to information and opportunities and through the use of mobile technology based solutions where possible. The focus is particularly on those young people at risk of exclusion. It also supports local communities in areas where Vodafone has a significant physical presence and Vodafone employees who are involved in community activities.

Wherever possible The Vodafone UK Foundation provides charity partners with a range of resources in addition to financial support. 

The Vodafone UK Foundation was presented with a PerCent standard logo in the 2003/04 Business in the Community Giving List Report. Vodafone Group was ranked 50 in 2005 The Sunday Times/Business in the Community Companies That Count survey. 

Further information can be found on www.vodafoneukfoundation.org

The Black Training and Enterprise Group
The Black Training and Enterprise Group was set up in 1991 to work towards improvements in Black Minority Ethnic groups (BME) communities in four key areas:

• Employment - increasing employment rates for BME people to the national average (15 percentage points differential BME vs. white)
• Economic regeneration - ensuring that BME communities contribute to regeneration of their communities
• Education - raising the attainment levels of BME pupils in education to achieve the national average (Black Caribbean 35% @ 5 GCSE grade A-C vs. 54% white)
• Enterprise - increasing the chances of success and growth for black entrepreneurs and black enterprises
  

Further information can be found on www.bteg.co.uk

Elizabeth FitzRoy Support
Elizabeth FitzRoy Support was set up in 1962 at the forefront of progressive care for people with learning disabilities. Elizabeth FitzRoy Support provides a range of support services for adults with all forms of learning disability in a variety of locations around the UK. They are currently supporting approximately 500 people and employ 800 full and part time staff.  Further information can be found on www.efitzroy.org.uk

Sustrans
Sustrans is the UK’s leading sustainable transport charity. Its vision is a world in which people choose to travel in ways that benefit their health and the environment. It is achieving this through innovative but practical solutions to the UK’s transport challenges.

The charity’s flagship project, the National Cycle Network now runs within one mile of over half the UK population and, in 2004, was used for 201 million trips. A team of 1,700 Volunteer Rangers helps to maintain the Network.  Further information can be found on www.sustrans.org.uk

Get Connected
Get Connected provides a free confidential telephone and e mail helpline to help young people in distress anywhere in the UK, providing them with emotional support and information on appropriate places to find help, connecting them by phone to those organisations where the young person so wishes.
 
The helpline is open from 1pm-11pm every day and 1,200 calls and emails are received per month. The helpline has 84 volunteer workers and a capacity of 14 with 2 terminals with disabled access. Get Connected also encourages other organisations to provide appropriate services, asking young people what their needs are and how they think they can best be met.  Further information can be found on www.getconnected.org.uk