Julia and Hans Rausing, have donated £2.5 million to charities based in Cheshire.
The donations have been made to 19 charities providing support across youth care, education, disability, welfare and restoration. The grants represent the couple’s increased focus on giving in the region and reflect Julia Rausing’s (née Delves-Broughton) long family affiliation with east Cheshire.
The largest donation, of £1.2 million, will be made to Crewe Youth Zone, which is building a new youth centre in the town. The funds will help support the first three year’s running costs of the youth centre and will create up to 70 full and part-time jobs and up to 100 volunteering opportunities.
Crewe Youth Zone is expected to be completed in spring 2025 and will be open seven days a week to young people aged between eight and 19. Members will have access to an indoor climbing wall, a four-court sports hall, a training kitchen, a music room with a recording studio, a fully-equipped gym, dance and drama studio, a 3G sports pitch, an arts and crafts room, and an enterprise and employability suite. Once opened, Crewe Youth Zone will be part of the OnSide Network of Youth Zones supporting more than 50,000 young people nationwide.
Commenting on the donation Joëlle Warren, Trustee of Crewe Youth Zone and Vice Lord Lieutenant for Cheshire said: “Crewe Youth Zone is profoundly grateful for the extraordinarily generous gift of £1.2 million from Julia and Hans Rausing and for their past support during the pandemic.
“This generous donation will initiate a Founder Patron campaign designed to achieve long-term sustainability, ensuring Crewe Youth Zone will be an asset to the community and transforming young people’s lives for generations to come. We warmly welcome them as our first Cornerstone Patron and greatly look forward to them being a partner in our journey.”
Julia and Hans Rausing said in a joint statement “Cheshire bears great significance to our family, which is why we have chosen to partner with these 19 charities in the region, all rooted in their local communities.
“These grants cover a broad range of charities to help those most in need across Cheshire. Supporting the new Youth Zone in Crewe will provide young people with a new state-of-the-art facility and will help develop vital skills for life.”
The 19 charities in Cheshire that have received grant funding over the past year are:
Central Cheshire Buddy Scheme
Chance Changing Lives
Cheshire Community Foundation
Cheshire Young Carers
CWA/Cheshire Without Abuse
East Cheshire Hospice
Friends for Leisure
Motherwell Charity
Nantwich Riding for the Disabled
Nantwich Foodbank
Pure Insight
Onside Youth Zone
Ruby’s Fund
St Johns, Doddington
St Luke’s (Cheshire) Hospice
St Marys Church, Nantwich
St Paul’s Centre
The Wingate Special Children’s Trust
Wishing Well Project