Halcrow donates £253,000 to its foundation

SBC member company Halcrow has doubled its funding for the Halcrow Foundation from 0.5 per cent of net annual profits to 1 per cent, representing £253,000 based on 2007's projected profit of £25.3 million.

Now entering its fourth year of operations, the Halcrow Foundation has 20 separate projects on its books in the UK and around the world - some of which are entering subsequent phases. To read a summary of the foundation's projects and aims, please visit www.halcrow.com/html/about/foundation/foundation_about.htm

The latest funding takes Halcrow's cash contribution over the three years to £380,000, while employees have donated over £65,000. But Halcrow also provides the foundation with the full use of its resources, including administrative, communications, secretariat and accounts, not to mention the time of project related staff and the trustees themselves. The majority of this year's funding has yet to be allocated to projects.

Since its inception, the foundation's trustees have honed the proposal assessment and approval process, ensuring that only people suffering real hardship receive its help. It has built homes and schools, as well as clean water and essential sanitation facilities across Asia and Africa. Other projects have focused on developing the tools and techniques for communities to generate their own income, like the fishing trawler purchased for a whole community in Indonesia.

There has also been a move towards more sustainable projects, such as the Navjyoti's Womens' Development Project, which has a rolling programme of funding taking it up to 2010. This project promotes social change in rural India by empowering women in poverty.

The foundation's projects are identified and managed by Halcrow employees.