A leading commercial insurance broker has helped to secure almost £20,000 to help fund the vital work of three Cheshire charities – including Children Today.

Chester-based Risk Services (NW) Ltd nominated Children Today along with Deafness Support Network and the National Communities Resource Centre in the annual Aviva Community Fund.

Deafness Support Network has received an award of £9,388 allowing it to run its popular Deafness and Dementia Café service across Cheshire for a second year.

Children Today has received £5,000 to host a circus-themed Family Fun Day. The Chester-based charity provides specialised equipment and services for children and young people with disabilities throughout the UK.

The final recipient is the National Communities Resource Centre which has also been given a grant of £5,000.

(l-r) Risk Service’s Tom Penn, Children Today’s Paula Hanford and Risk Service’s Steve Lowe

The funding for the three charities was made possible because of Risk Services’ close partnership with Aviva which runs an annual Community Fund to support good causes across the UK.

Paula Hanford, Regional Fundraiser for Children Today, said: “This generous grant is an incredible start to our year as our charity relies totally on voluntary donations. We are all really looking forward to putting these funds to good use with a fun-filled Family Fun Day where the community can all come together to help support our work and raise funds for specialised equipment for children and young people with disabilities.”

Steve Lowe, Managing Director of Risk Services, said: “We are thrilled to be able to support these three exceptional charities to the tune of almost £20,000.

“In the case of Children Today, it continues our partnership of last year when they were our chosen Charity of the Year.

“The Aviva Community Fund provides an opportunity each year for brokers to help charities submit applications for crucial funding. There is strong competition from good causes across the UK and every application is subjected to rigorous scrutiny.

“We have a number of clients within the charitable sector and part of our commitment to them is looking for opportunities, such as the Community Fund, to provide added value.”