Charities share £100,000 Community Fund

One Hundred good causes across Tunbridge Wells have received a share of a £100,000 community fund set up after water supply issues in the area at the end of last year.

South East Water joined with the town’s MP Greg Clark to distribute the cash to 100 charities with sums ranging from £500 to £5,000.

Groups and organizations were chosen by Mr Clark and a judging panel after being invited to apply for a share of the fund. It was set up to thank the community for its patience when a rapid freeze-thaw weather event in

December caused widespread interruption to tap water supplies.

Representatives from the charities received their cheques at a ceremony at the Trinity Theatre, in Church Road, which itself got a £1,500 grant.

South East Water’s Customer Service Director Tanya Sephton said: “We know it was a very tough time for the whole community, especially as it happened during the festive season.

“The weather is outside of our control and when sudden, big changes in temperature happen, it can have a huge impact, causing leaks and bursts both on our network and on customers’ pipework. This is what happened in December.

“We take our role as a responsible water company seriously and wanted to thank Tunbridge Wells residents for their understanding. This is a gesture which will have a long term benefit for everyone – and there’s no better way than to support the tireless work of the great causes which are right at the heart of the community. A big thank you to them all.”

Mr Clark said: “Following the water outages last December my priority was to ensure that individual households were compensated. South East Water listened to my concerns by going beyond the statutory minimum and paying households up to £250 – more than the average bill for a year. This resulted in £1.8 million paid out in compensation to households in my constituency.

“However I am delighted that South East Water have gone one step further and recognised the impact that these outages had on the community as a whole, by generously endowing this community fund which will benefit so many good causes.

“Moving forward we must ensure there is good resilience in our local water network and I will continue to work with South East Water to ensure that this is delivered.”

Among the charities which received a grant was Tunbridge Wells Community Larder which provides fresh food including fruit and vegetables to those in need.

John Payne from the charity said: "The grant will enable us to continue to meet a vital need of supporting those in need in the community. It will also enable us to supplement what we provide through purchasing basic goods we find it difficult to get hold of.”