Ten award-winning charities will tonight each receive £25,000 in recognition of their outstanding work in addressing some of the most difficult health issues and improving health care in some of the UK's most deprived communities.

The GSK IMPACT Awards, a partnership with independent health charity The King's Fund, celebrate the vital contribution made by the voluntary sector to improving health care in the UK.

The winners - which range from a project working with young homeless people to a service offering support to women and girls who have experienced gendered violence including childhood sexual abuse and rape - will be awarded their prizes at a ceremony at the Science Museum in London tonight.

Now in their thirteenth year, the GSK IMPACT Awards have provided over £2.8 million of funding to over 260 charities since they were established in 1997.

The contribution made by the voluntary sector has grown over this period to the extent that it now provides £4.7 billion of NHS services specialising in areas such as long term conditions, preventative health care and working with hard to reach communities.

As the NHS enters a very challenging period, with spending set to be frozen in real terms for the foreseeable future, the awards provide a crucial source of funding for charities providing vital services and build capacity for tackling the health problems that blight many of the UK's most socially excluded groups and deprived communities.

As well as receiving £25,000, the ten winners will attend a five day development programme hosted by The King's Fund which provides training, development and networking opportunities for voluntary sector organisations working in health care.

The programme aims to equip participating organisations with the skills to consolidate and extend their successful work, including working with Primary Care Trusts and other health bodies.

The overall winner - which will be announced at the ceremony - will receive an additional £10,000.

Another five highly commended organisations will each receive £5,000 and the opportunity to attend the development programme, with four runners-up also receiving £3,000.

GSK chairman, Sir Christopher Gent said: "The contribution of the voluntary sector cannot be over-estimated in addressing the challenging health and social issues we face across the UK. Charitable organisations need resources, money and recognition to deliver outstanding support for people living in the communities they serve."

Sir Cyril Chantler, chairman of the King's Fund and one of the judges for the awards, said: "The quality of the IMPACT Awards entrants was outstanding and they demonstrated the enormous contribution that charities make to health care in the UK.

"The King's Fund is well known for its policy analysis and leadership work, but we are also becoming increasingly involved in practical work to improve delivery of frontline health services. We are therefore delighted to work with GSK to support the vital contribution the voluntary sector makes to improving health care."


The ten winners of the 13th Annual GlaxoSmithKline IMPACT Awards are:

Arts for Health Cornwall and Isles of Scilly : www.artsforhealthcornwall.org.uk

Using a variety of arts forms, including painting, poetry and dance to improve health and wellbeing and raise awareness of local health inequalities such as homelessness. It provides advice, support and information on arts and health, networking, education and training for arts and health practitioners, consultancy and evaluation as well as delivering a range of projects.

Auditory Verbal: Bicester, Oxfordshire : www.avuk.org

A UK wide organisation which works to address the language gap most deaf children face between themselves and their peers when starting school by teaching severely and profoundly deaf babies and children of pre-school age to listen and speak.

The HALE Project : Bradford : www.haleproject.org.uk

A healthy living charity working with people living in areas of significant health deprivation, addressing health inequalities around obesity, oral health, sexual health and mental health utilising a range of innovative techniques to reach people who do not use mainstream services.

Midlothian Young People's Advice Service : Dalkeith, Midlothian : www.mypas.co.uk

Aiming to improve the health and well-being of young people aged 12-25 years across Midlothian. Using a combination of one to one support, group work, counselling and other therapies, it addresses a range of issues including; sexual health, drug and alcohol abuse and engages with young people who are outside on the streets.

New Horizon Youth Centre : King's Cross, London : www.nhyouthcentre.org.uk

A day centre offering a range of services to young vulnerable homeless 16 to 21 year olds and older sex workers. Services range from advice and support on accommodation and educational and training programmes, to offering specific health related services such as a resident nurse.

One25 : Bristol : www.one25.org.uk

Using a combination of outreach work, drop-in facilities and one-to-one casework support, One25 is enabling women who are abused and trapped in a life of street sex work to break free from their abusive lifestyle, make healthy life choices and foster positive relationships with their families and communities.

Positively Women : Islington, London : www.positivelywomen.org.uk

The only national charity working to improve the quality of life of women and families affected by HIV. It provides practical and emotional assistance, enabling women to make informed decisions about their health and future options.

Prostate Scotland : Edinburgh : www.prostatescotland.co.uk

Serving the whole of Scotland, it aims to inform and educate the public about prostate health by raising awareness of, and providing information on, prostatic diseases to encourage screening and improve treatments. It is also influencing the development of prostate health policy in the national arena and promoting research into prostatic disease in Scotland.

The Haven Centre : South Lanarkshire, Scotland : www.thehavencentre.com

A centre offering a range of support services for people living in Lanarkshire who have life limiting conditions such as cancer, multiple sclerosis, motor neurone disease and Parkinson's

Women & Girls Network : London : www.wgn.org.uk

Offering help, advice and support to women and girls living in London who have experienced historic or recent gendered violence, including childhood sexual abuse, domestic violence, female genital mutilation, forced marriage, prostitution, rape, torture and trafficking.

For more information go to: http://www.kingsfund.org.uk/gsk_impact_awards

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