Community Grant Awards
As we all know, fundraising remains a challenge for many charities. However, last year we had an amazing year, raising a fantastic £405,000.
This much needed funding enabled us to continue to make Community Grant donations in March, through our End of Year Awards, supporting charities local to our vehicle plant in Derbyshire, as well as our Engine Plant in North Wales.
Find out more about some of the charities we support
Some of the charities who received funding earlier this year
Derby and Burton Hospitals Charity
The charity supports the University Hospitals of Derby & Burton NHS Foundation Trust and offers extras not provided by NHS statutory funding but making a difference.
A donation earlier this year enabled their Combined Day Unit, a busy outpatient department, to purchase a handheld vein viewing system which allows for better visualisation of veins, improving the cannulation process and blood taking, which can be difficult in cancer patients.
We are proud to support their vital work making a real difference in the lives of patients and staff in our local community.
Watch the thank you video here.
Wales Air Ambulance
Funded entirely by donations, it costs Wales Air Ambulance £11.2m annually to deliver vital lifesaving, advanced medical care to people across the North Wales region.
Their Rapid Response Vehicles (RRV) are part of their operational fleet, alongside their helicopters, and are based at each of their four bases across Wales. They provide vital land-based support when poor weather prevents the helicopters from taking off. They can cover up to 600 miles in a shift and are the difference between no response and attending a patient.
In March 2026, the Trust donated £5,000 to contribute towards rising fuel costs for their RRVs.
Annie Lawrie, Grant and Trust Fundraiser for Wales Air Ambulance, said “We believe everyone in Wales deserves fast, critical care wherever and whenever they need us. We are so grateful to the Toyota Manufacturing UK Charitable Trust for this donation, which has helped us deliver our lifesaving service across North Wales.”
Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Rutland Air Ambulance
Derbyshire, Leicestershire & Rutland Air Ambulance receive no government funding and their life saving missions are fuelled purely by donations.
Each year, more than £69,000 is spent on medical consumables which are single use items used to treat patients in the field until reaching hospital.
Our 2025 fundraising activities enabled us to proudly support towards those costs with a donation of £5,000.
It is a privilege and an honour to support Derbyshire Leicestershire & Rutland Air Ambulance.
Burton & District Mind
Burton & District Mind aim to ensure that everyone who needs it gets the right support to improve their mental health.
A £2,000 donation earlier this year will fund their 8-week Mindful Weekend Walking Group which introduces adults with experience of mental health problems to the benefits of walking and psychoeducation. The project will run in partnership with a Qualified Walk Leader alongside a Trained Counsellor.
Having undertaken their first session, one participant commented “ I would have stayed in bed if I hadn’t planned and come along to the group.” Whilst another said “I find it difficult to open up and talk, especially in clinical environments, this walking group is just what I needed. It is brilliant that it is free of charge!”
Keep on walking!
Canine Partners - Amazing Dogs, Transforming Lives
Canine Partners is a UK charity transforming the lives of people living with disabilities by training assistance dogs. Their amazing dogs are trained to meet the needs of individuals with even the most complex physical disabilities. They currently help adults aged 18 and over (both civilians and former service personnel) who have a physical disability or condition that affects their daily life and limits their independence.
Earlier this year, the Charitable Trust was proud to contribute towards their quest to purchase a Stance Analyser for their National Training Centre. This is a veterinary diagonostic tool that measures how an animal distributes weight across its limbs to detect lameness and monitor rehabilitation. Having their own equipment reduces reliance on costly external services and allows them to obtain results and resolve issues quickly.
Ellie Foster, Trusts and Grants Manager, Canine Partners said “we are very grateful to the Toyota Manufacturing UK Charitable Trust for their continued support and generous donation of £3,000”.
Circus Starr
Circus Starr is a circus with a purpose. Their mission is to transform, enrich and inspire the lives of children and families across the UK who need it most. Free tickets are given to disadvantaged, disabled or vulnerable children and their families so they can leave their worries behind and escape to the big top circus for a few hours of fun and entertainment. Following a donation of £5,000 from the Toyota Manufacturing UK Charitable Trust, children from the Derbyshire and Deeside areas will experience the thrill and magic of a live performance in 2026.
Ady Smallman from the Deeside Engine plant took his family to the Wrexham performance following a previous donation from the Trust. Diagnosed with Worster Drought syndrome at three weeks old, ten year old William absolutely loved the big top. The magical art of circus performance certainly made many happy memories, not only for William, but for the whole family.
South Normanton Area Foodbank
Established in 2013, South Normanton Area Foodbank believes that no-one in their community should have to face going hungry. That’s why they provide nutritionally balanced emergency food and support to local people who are referred to them in crisis. Part of a nationwide network of foodbanks, supported by The Trussell Trust, they work to combat poverty and hunger across the UK.
Spread across 2 locations, South Normanton and Alfreton, they provide a warm drink, chat and advice if needed, together with receipt of a food parcel that lasts 3 to 4 days. 33 wonderful volunteers are involved with processing and handling their foodbank stock and running the 3 foodbank sessions per week. Last year, approximately 4,000 local people were referred to them in crisis and fed by their project.
Earlier this year, a £2,600 donation was made to contribute towards rent and increasing energy costs, enabling the foodbank to grow and keep up with demand.
Lisa Wilson, Foodbank Co-ordinator said “We think the level of community support that Toyota Charitable Trust is doing is amazing and you should all be really proud of how many people you are helping across a very diverse range of needs”.
Daffodils
Based close to our Engine facility in Flintshire, North Wales, Daffodils provide recreational and leisure activities to children and young people with physical and mental disabilities.
The charity facilitates approximately 170 events and activities each year, consisting of weekly youth clubs, monthly leisure centre activities, swimming, bowling and cinema sessions to name but a few. The activities are crucial to foster inclusion and improve wellbeing whilst reducing social isolation for disabled children, young people and their families.
Following a donation of £3,000 from the Trust in March, their recent fun filled trip to Manorafon Farm Park in Abergele enabled 68 parent carers, 39 siblings/young carers and 54 disabled children and young people to have a fabulous day out during the Easter holidays. Creating accessible, family-friendly spaces, not only offers the opportunity to spend quality time together but builds confidence to venture out and about as families living with a disability.
Burton Hope
Luckily, help is always available at Burton Hope for those in crisis.
A donation from the Trust supported milage costs for their much-needed volunteers, enabling them to use their own vehicles, which can be crucial to attract and retain those volunteers. They are the only food-bank in Burton that deliver.
John Anderson Chairman of Burton Hope said “Some clients are unable to collect for a host of reasons, including mental and physical health issues. Thank you for caring. Your support is very much appreciated and very valuable to theusers of our service”.
In 2023, Burton Hope was awarded the King’s Award for Voluntary Service, the highest honour a charity can receive. This is testament to the incredible work of their team, comprised completely of volunteers who work hard to provide services to those in need.
Derby Theatre
At Derby Theatre, community and collaboration are at the heart of what they do, creating experiences that uplift hearts, broaden horizons and build change for the better.
Funding from the Trust earlier this year supported them in their mission to host a monthly Dementia Friendly Carers Café, welcoming people living with Dementia and their carers to socialise and take part in creative activities. The café is led by an experienced creative practitioner and supported by Derby Theatre's Community projects.
In addition, a Dementia friendly tea dance enabled participants to enjoy an afternoon of music, dance & refreshments whilst a singer and musician toured care homes in Derby, maximising the positive impact of live music and interactive sessions.
Blood Bikes Wales (Wrexham Group)
Bloodbikes Wales (Wrexham Group) is a member of the Nationwide Association of Blood Bikes which share their quest to provide a reliable, free, high-quality service to health trusts throughout the country.
An amazing team with 100% volunteers, Bloodbikes Wales (Wrexham Group) are ready to support come rain or shine, delivering blood samples, plasma, donated human milk, documents and other items in and around our Deeside Engine Plant.
We are always proud to support this wonderful charity and were delighted to donate £1,924 earlier this year to fund equipment ranging from Sat Navs to panniers for their bikes.
Chris Jones, Area Committee Representative & Trustee Wrexham said "Once again the generosity of the Toyota Manufacturing UK Charitable Trust has helped us to kit out another bloodbike to service the people of North Wales. Their generosity has helped supply equipment used to carry/transport blood samples plus many other items to either the Labs or directly to patients to help with their speedy recovery".
St John Ambulance Cymru
Providing first aid treatment, training, and transport, this amazing charity has four divisions across North Wales in Holywell, Ruthin, Deeside & Wrexham. On average, they support 100 events each year and treat around 250 patients.
Funding from the Trust earlier this year funded essential lifesaving equipment, including resuscitation equipment, tourniquets, and medications. A training defibrillator and CPR manikin were also funded.
Sam Cook, Partnership and Relationship Manager at St John Ambulance Cymru, said: “We are extremely grateful to the Toyota Manufacturing UK Charitable Trust for their donation which will ensure our volunteers have everything they need to provide high quality firstaid cover across North Wales. As well as helping to improve our volunteer experience, we hope it will encourage more people to learn vital first aid skills and become volunteers to support our goal to make Wales a community of lifesavers.”
Derbyshire Blood Bikes
Derbyshire Blood Bikes provide a free 24/7 medical courier service to the Royal Derby Hospital and Chesterfield Hospital. They continue to have the trust and support of both our major hospitals, saving them considerable sums of money.
Annually, they carry out over 8,000 deliveries which directly benefits some 75,000 patients and saves the NHS around £500,000 each year.
We are proud to support the Derbyshire Blood Bikes (DBB) and are were delighted, earlier this year, to donate £3,000 towards dashcams for their 12 motorcycles and 6 vehicles. Lack of dashcam evidence can be costly in terms of repairs but also gives their amazing drivers increased peace of mind whilst volunteering for DBB.
Keep up the good work!
Previous Recipients
Their Stories
We are proud to share the stories of those who have received a Community Grant.
Explore the organisations we’ve supported in recent years and the incredible work they do in our communities.
The 2026 Award
Should you be interested in applying for an award following our 2026 fundraising activities, please revisit the website at the beginning of October this year to confirm eligibility and download an application pack. Please be aware that successful donations will be made in March 2027.
Community Grant Recipients following our 2025 Fundraising Activities
Some thank you messages from our recipients
