The National Express Foundation is marking its tenth anniversary with a raft of new community grants which will benefit young people.

This year National Express Foundation invited local community groups to apply for a share of £90,000 of funding to help disadvantaged young people to succeed in life. The funding provides support to community groups that are making a positive input to the lives of young people and setting them up for success in the future.

Since it was launched in 2012 the Foundation has supported more than 25,000 young people through £1.5 million of funding. It aims to support groups with initiatives that deliver developmental, educational and social activities for local young people across the West Midlands. This year, 20 local groups have been awarded funds.

Tom Stables, National Express Foundation chair of trustees, said: “This year marks a decade since the Foundation was created, and I am very proud of everything we have achieved and the number of young people we have helped.

“The community groups we support have such a huge impact on the lives of young people, and I am delighted to be able to provide further funding to enable them to continue their great work.”

Employability UK will use their £5,000 funding to deliver The Journey Continues - a programme of workshops in Birmingham for young people not in a mainstream school, from a not in education, employment or training (NEET) or special educational needs (SEN) background.

Krystyna Nosek, Employability UK, said: “This grant enables the charity to continue our important work with under-represented groups. The Journey Continues gives the targeted young people the opportunity to reflect on their own skills and aspirations and discuss with our volunteers about their visions and goals and how to achieve a successful future. We are delighted to be continuing our partnership with the National Express Foundation, which has helped us transform over 250 young lives over the past two years.”

Longford Short Football will use their £2,500 awards to fund more portable goals to expand the number of football sessions they can hold across Coventry and enable more young people to participate.

Randy Green, Longford Short Football, said: “This wonderful foundation grant will enable us to deliver impactful sessions within the socially disadvantaged areas of critical importance for our young people and bridge postcode divides while fostering a more inclusive and peaceful society.”

Olio Hub, in Darlaston, will use their £5,000 award to expand its activities, allowing more young people to participate and also to renew equipment.

Sandra Adams, Olio Hub, said: “The funds awarded to Olio Hub will enable our young people to take part in rewarding positive physical and academic activities. We will continue to encourage engagement with participants learning and sharing skills leading to a brighter future for all.”

Full list of the groups receiving funding this year

More details of previous activities that have been supported can be found at www.nationalexpressgroup.com/foundation.