GlaxoSmithKline awards funding to UK health charity

GlaxoSmithKline has provided an award of 35,000 pounds to a young people's health charity in the UK as part of its corporate social responsibility initiatives.

Tower Hamlets-based Step Forward has been named as the winner of the company's annual Impact Awards, which is run in association with The King's Fund in order to reward not-for-profit programmes that demonstrate innovation and high responsiveness to local needs.

The judging panel chose Step Forward for the accolade based on its work in helping more than 2,000 11 to 25-year-olds in one of Britain's most deprived areas to overcome personal, social and health problems via counselling and support services.

Sir Christopher Gent, chairman of GlaxoSmithKline and a judge on the panel, said: "Their success is a testament to what can be achieved when charities and the NHS work together effectively."

Last week, the company announced that it has allied with AstraZeneca and the University of Manchester to create a new research centre for inflammatory disease in the north-west of England.