CHARITIES across Hampshire are being invited to apply for grants from the Gannett Foundation.

The foundation is the charitable arm of Gannett Co., Inc, owner of the Newsquest Media Group, whose titles include the Southern Daily Echo.

Grants are made twice a year and normally range from £1,000 to £5,000 - but can sometimes be larger for exceptional projects.

Hampshire organisations to have benefited in the recent past from Gannett Foundation grants include Age Concern, which bought a hearing loop for its centre in Chandler's Ford, Honeypot, an organisation which provides holidays in Hampshire for youngsters from deprived backgrounds, and the county's branch of national charity Hearing Dogs for the Deaf.

The Gannett Foundation has given away about £3m since it was established four years ago.

It supports projects which take a creative approach to fundamental issues such as education and neighbourhood improvements, economic development, youth development, community problem-solving, assistance to disadvantaged people, environmental conservation and cultural enrichment.

Grants will not be given to individuals, organisations which are not registered charities, national or regional organisations unless the project addresses specific local community needs, promotion of religious causes, endowment funds, general appeals or multi-year campaigns, medical or research organisations, animal charities or uniformed organisations.

Groups which have received a Gannett Foundation grant in the past 12 months will also be ineligible.

Applications must be submitted on the approved application form, which can be obtained from Anne Dickie, Southern Daily Echo, Newspaper House, Test Lane, Southampton, SO16 9JX. E-mail her at anne.dickie@soton-echo.co.uk or call her on 023 8042 4536.

The deadline for applications is Tuesday, April 18.

Newsquest, the UK's second largest regional publisher with more than 9,000 employees, publishes 317 local and regional newspaper titles across the UK from Falmouth to Glasgow and Pembrokeshire to Essex.