THOUSANDS of pounds is being offered to community groups by the firm behind the Woodsmith mine project being built at Whitby and Teesside.

The Sirius Minerals Foundation, the charitable body supported by Anglo American’s Woodsmith Project, has launched the second part of its Covid-19 recovery fund, worth a total of £400,000.

Grants of between £500 and £5000 are being made available for small voluntary and community organisations in Scarborough, the North York Moors National Park and Redcar and Cleveland.

Leah Swain, chief executive of the Sirius Minerals Foundation, said: “The aim of this grants round is to fund projects and activities that are focussed on helping people in our communities to regain their confidence and restart their lives, as the country begins to come out of lockdown.

“So that could mean helping people who have been shielding to go out shopping and visit friends, or running activity classes to reduce social isolation, or helping people who have lost their jobs in the pandemic to gain new skills.”

This round of grants is aimed at small, local organisations who have not previously been supported by the Foundation.

Ms Swain said: “We know that many local voluntary and community organisations have had to substantially change the way they carry out their work because of the pandemic, which has impacted them greatly.

“We want to ensure they can continue to deliver services in our communities and respond to local need”.

Full details can be found at siriusmineralsfoundation.co.uk and applications are open until June 16.