A FAST-growing organisation is offering a service for charity giving in Bolton and Bury. The Community Foundation for Greater Manchester, which operated as the Community Trust for nine years, is seeking to raise its profile in the local business world. It is estimated that more than 70 per cent of Greater Manchester donations are used elsewhere.

But those made through the Foundation are allocated by a board to local organisations which apply.

The average grant is currently around £500.

Chief Executive Nick Massey says: "Much charity giving is re-active and cause-related.

"The Foundation is pro-active and community related so we can channel the money through to any cause at any given time, depending on which one it will help the most."

The Foundation is armed with a range of modern corporate tools -- data collection, marketing and reporting techniques -- and sees itself more like a business than a charity.

Mr Massey is well aware that charity requests can be overwhelming for some firms and suggests that some of the hassle can be avoided by making an annual contribution of £250 upwards.

"A business which receives lots of telephone calls can point out that it gives money through the Community Fund," he said.

A total of £7,600 has been allocated to Bolton organisations this year and grants to a level not yet decided will be distributed in Bury this month or next.

Community Foundations, which are a relatively new idea for the UK, started in the United States 80 years ago.

There are now more than 600.

The Greater Manchester Community Foundation is run by an independent board of trustees made up of professionals and experts from the private, statutory and voluntary sectors.

The core activity is to create an endowment fund which allows money to grow and be sustainable.

In addition to clear tax advantages, a company is able to make a donation which will outlast the individual decision-maker and go on to help future generations.

Grants only go to local groups which are well-run and to projects which are viable and will ultimately make a genuine difference to the community they serve.

Causes to benefit range from drug rehabilitation units to wildlife centres and children's adventure farms.

Mr Massey added: "In the past year we serviced more than 900 organisations.

"We hope it will be 5,000 by 2002."

If you want to know more about the Foundation contact Nick Massey on 0161-828-8725 or write to him at Community Foundation for Greater Manchester, John Dalton House, 121 Deansgate, Manchester, M2 3BX.

The web site is www.communityfoundation.co.uk