News UK has donated £100,000 to four UK charities as part of its annual News Corp Giving fund – a programme that supports charities in the communities where its employees across the UK and Ireland live and work.

Employees from across News UK, Dow Jones, HarperCollins UK, Unruly and Wireless Group voted for this year’s winners from a shortlist of seven charitable organisations, proposed in an earlier round by staff. The grant was split equally between the four highest-polling charities – Shelter, Magic Breakfast, Pieta House and the National Literacy Trust.

Andy Harris, Director of Fundraising at Shelter, said: “We rely on the generosity of donors to carry out our vital work, so we’re thrilled to be one of News Corp’s charities of choice. Donations like this help Shelter to ensure struggling people and families can find a safe and secure place to call home.”

Alex Cunningham, CEO of Magic Breakfast said: “The grant will provide 1,320 children across six schools with access to a morning breakfast club – a total of 78,930 breakfasts over the course of an academic year. The impact this will have is significant. We consistently track huge improvements in; concentration, attendance, punctuality and alertness of children; benefits that are felt by the whole school community.

Brian Higgins, Pieta House CEO said: “We are delighted to receive this support from News Corp for our Resilience Academy programme. If we want to prevent suicide and self-harm it is vital that we empower young people with the skills to cope with the stresses and strains of modern life. Pieta relies on the support of funders to offer our services and we greatly appreciate the generosity of News Corp in backing this initiative.”

Jonathan Douglas, Director of the National Literacy Trust, said: “We are thrilled that News Corp has chosen to partner with the National Literacy Trust. Their generosity will help us transform the lives of hundreds of children from the most disadvantaged communities in the UK by giving them the literacy skills they need to lead happy and successful lives.”  

Now in its fourth year, the initiative opens up further opportunities for employees to get involved in volunteering, fundraising and long-term support.