1 In 5 North East Charities Face Closure

20 January 2015, 06:48 | Updated: 20 January 2015, 06:51

A new study has found one in five charities based in the North East could face closure this year because of funding cuts.

A survey of more than 140 charities found that seven out of 10 reported an increase in demand for their services.

More than half said they were considering making redundancies this year and 62% were using their reserves to survive, while over 20% warned they faced closure.

The Garfield Weston Foundation said awards launched a year ago in the North East will now be expanded to help small charities across the region.

Director Philippa Charles said:
"Over the last three years we've been shocked to see a significant decline in the number of funding applications from charities in the North.

What's really worrying is that applications from organisations providing community services fell by about 40% - the very areas hit hard by funding cuts.

By building on the success of the first ever Weston Charity Awards in the North East, we want to reach more charities across the North, helping them to achieve their goals.''