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Charities and grass roots organisations across the South East have received £250,000 from an airport charity fund.

The Gatwick Airport Community Trust, which is financed exclusively by the airport, has provided support for more than 100 groups in its latest round of funding.

A school in Kent, a homeless charity in West Sussex and a food distributor in Surrey were among the organisations to receive cash.

Melanie Wrightson, stakeholder engagement manager at London Gatwick, said: "The ongoing support offered by the Gatwick Airport Community Trust is yielding tangible benefits for grassroots organisations, charities and voluntary initiatives."

In Kent, The headteacher of Hever Church of England Primary School, Helene Bligh, said: “We are immensely grateful for the donation of £5,000 towards the resurfacing of our school playground and our outdoor learning and sensory space."

Meanwhile in West Sussex, the homelessness charity, Crawley Open House, received £7,500 to help renovate its showers and toilets.

Ian Wilkins, the charity's head of fundraising and relationships, said the trust had supported "the vital work" of the charity for many years.

FareShare Sussex & Surrey, a food distributor tackling hunger, received £5,000 to help fund its commercial chiller at its Brighton depot.

The organisation's chief executive, Dan Slatter, said: "As a charity, we are reliant on funds such as these to be able to continue feeding 16,560 people every week."

Applications for next years fund - which has been running since 2002 - will reopen again in November and close next March.

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