Voluntary sector organisations and charities across England set to receive a boost.

Lloyds Banking Group plc (LON:LLOY) has announced it will be seconding four Business Connectors with Business in the Community to support voluntary sector organisations and charities across England.

The news comes as Big Lottery Fund this week awards £4.8 million to upscale the Business in the Community’s successful Business Connectors programme in some of the most disadvantaged areas in England, leveraging more than £39 million worth of talent from businesses and £52 million worth of impact in to local communities.

The Business Connectors programme, one of the Prince's charities, is designed to deliver people with the expertise and skills to understand social challenges where it is needed most – at the heart of communities. Business Connectors help connect small businesses with charities and organisations trying to overcome such issues as employment, education and enterprise by using their extensive experience and wealth of business connections. 

As part of its commitment to the scheme, Lloyds Banking Group will provide the infrastructure and training for all the new secondees as well as placing up to 60 senior employees in communities across the UK for an entire year for the next three years. They will work on the ground in areas most in need across the country. 

The Group’s commitment to fund the training of all Connectors, whichever business they come, equates to a £600,000 investment over three years. The investment has enabled Business in the Community to increase it’s ambition to create a national network of over 670 Business Connectors.