Lloyds Bank Foundation helps Relate with funding

Friday 01 June 2018

Relate Guernsey has benefitted from a two-year grant from the Lloyds Bank Foundation for the Channel Islands which will support the charity’s core operating costs.

The charity said this funding will be "vital in enabling the relationship service to continue" while helping with the administrative and running costs as well as assisting with the training costs of the counsellors.

The services offered by the charity will be able to continue at a minimal charge, while in addition, Relate Guernsey said it has seen a growing need for specialist services for young people who may be affected as a family member, as well as adults being referred from medical professionals for psychosexual therapy, which will all now also benefit from the funding.

Simon Wood from Relate Guernsey said; “We are delighted to receive a grant from the Lloyds Bank Foundation for the Channel Islands, which will be a great help and will boost our ability to provide support and assistance to those who are experiencing relationship problems of one kind or another. Although many of our clients are seeking help and advice with problems within a one-to-one relationship, the service is also available for less well understood matters, for example, working with individual or single clients who are having difficulty in making or having any kind of relationship, leading to depression, loss of confidence and even, perhaps, loss of employment.”

He continued: “We are currently working to extend our services to young people where relationship or friendship problems can lead to bullying and other harmful outcomes. This is especially important in the modern world where social media can have such a powerful influence on young people and how they develop and prepare themselves for the future.”

Jo Le Poidevin, Executive Director, Lloyds Bank Foundation for the Channel Islands commented: 

“Covering the core operating costs for a charity like Relate Guernsey, who encourage and promote positive relationships which also benefits in terms of parenting skills, ability to cope at work, and general health and wellbeing, is absolutely vital to their operation and we are delighted to be able to support them in this way. The Foundation is one of very few funding bodies that will cover these costs and we recognise just how important this funding can be. They have numerous costs that go into providing qualified counsellors as well as training and supervision for them which comes in the form of fees, salaries, and travel costs for UK support.”