FIFTEEN charities are celebrating having their finances boosted after being hit by the coronavirus pandemic.

A community group for young families, a homeless service and the cadet forces are some of the charities that will each get a hand out from Kendal Town Council.

The money, first proposed last month, was confirmed and signed into reality at a full town council meeting.

£2,500 will be given to Outside out. The community group, based in Beezon Road in Kendal, says it welcomes families to their centre to 'play and have fun, relax, learn, share, socialise, get active, feel looked after, cared for and cared about.'

£500 has been set aside for the  Kendal Air Cadet Squadron. The group, also know as 1127 Squadron, are based out of the TA Centre on Queen Katherine Street. A spokesman said: “Cadet life is about learning through practical experience, especially in the great outdoors.”

And £2,500 will be given to Manna House, the Homeless support centre based on Ann Street in Kendal. The charity provides advice, and a drop-in support centre for the homeless, and could be getting a second hand out late next year for its garden project.

Cllr Giles Archibald said: “We should use this money to support these charities because they are very good ones. We have a good view of the landscape of who needs this money. But we should not sit on the fence on the rest of this money we have as there are people in the community that need it now and we should show them that we are here to help them. We should get on with it and spend it.”

A total of 15 grant applications were given the seal of approval, with the lowest amount for £50. The council meets again in January to discuss new grant applications and it has £10,000 to give away.