Business leaders welcomed to board of LCF

THREE successful business people have joined the board of trustees at Leeds Community Foundation.

The new trustees are Martin Allison, a well known professional banker who chairs a number of northern companies, Rachel Hannan, a business angel who is an experienced entrepreneur and company director and Jonathan Morgan, founder and managing director of Morgans City Living.

Leeds Community Foundation is a charity which distributes grants to community based organisations, local charities and social enterprises across the city.

The new trustees will help the foundation raise more private investment and apply more business and entrepreneurial expertise to its work across the city.

The charity has been running for six years and has distributed more than £19m in grants to support scores of community-based organisations, charities and social enterprises in Leeds.

Many of them are tackling some of the city’s most significant issues – domestic violence, homelessness, social isolation, issues around health and disability and helping young people get into work. 

Announcing the appointments, Kevin O’Connor, regional managing partner of accountants Baker Tilly and chairman of the foundation, said: “Our recent research has revealed that many of these organisations are struggling with reduced funding and increased demand for their work. Our response is to increase our efforts to raise more private investment to support the vital work of these groups.

“Consequently we are expanding our board of trustees, to bring in more entrepreneurs who share our passion for Leeds and who can help bring new ideas, contacts and energy to our plans.

“This year the Foundation is focusing on the recently launched Yorkshire Philanthropy Programme to encourage more private sector involvement in supporting social enterprises to improve the sustainability of the third sector,” he added.