FOUR local organisations have been given a cash boost thanks to the Hexham Courant Charitable Trust.

Almost £1,500 has been handed out to good causes across Tynedale.

Hexham First School has been awarded £500 towards the redevelopment of its early years outdoor play area.

The application came from the school’s PTA, which is working to develop the outdoor space in phases, with the project to provide an “environmentally-friendly nature space” costing more than £10,000.

Hexham Holiday Club, which has been held in July for the last 40 years for children and teenagers in the area, was awarded £300.

More than 100 volunteers work to organise events and activities around the town for up to 300 local young people, under the umbrella of the Scripture Union.

Hexham Abbey Festival was given a boost of £345 towards community events scheduled to take place on September 23.

The festival is now in its 65th season and works to bring art and music into the community.

Two events – Singing Babies and a fun choir for five to eight year olds in the Great Hall at Hexham Abbey – will be funded by the donation.

And Transition Tynedale received £350 towards its Edible Hexham project.

The group, which aims to support local action on climate change, will use the funds to prepare and plant a third bed within Hexham’s Wentworth car park with vegetables, fruit trees and bushes.

The charitable trust is one of the ways the Hexham Courant makes a difference in the communities it serves and is open to applications from local charities and groups whose work benefits the area.

Meetings of the trust are held four times a year, so applications should be made by the end of February, May, August and November at the latest.

For more information, contact Kirsty Wills on (01434) 613101 or via email at kirsty.wills@hexham-courant.co.uk