- The Forgotten 40 project, founded by INEOS, extends funding for three years, supporting the lives of over 25,000 children in the UK’s most deprived communities.
- Funding will benefit children across 100 primary schools with each school receiving £15,000 annually through to 2028.
- INEOS’ investment will total over £10m helping those located in some of the UK’s poorest postcodes.
- Elaine Wyllie, Founder of The Daily Mile and Forgotten 40 Committee Members, said: “INEOS’ renewed support will ensure that schools can continue to provide vital help and give children the best possible start in life.”
22/05/2025 – INEOS has announced an extended funding commitment to its Forgotten 40 project, supporting primary schools in some of the UK’s most deprived communities. The renewed funding will benefit over 25,000 children across 100 primary schools, with each school receiving £10,000 in 2024–2025, rising to £15,000 annually through to 2028.
Launched in 2020, the Forgotten 40 project provides direct funding to headteachers, enabling them to make targeted decisions to best support their pupils and local communities. The project is founded on trust, giving headteachers the freedom to react and respond to the needs of those in their schools.
After a pilot in 2020 with 20 schools, the initiative expanded to 100 schools in 2021, with each receiving £20,000 per year for three years. To date, INEOS has invested over £7 million in the project.
Elaine Wyllie, Founder of The Daily Mile and member of the Forgotten 40 team, said: “The Forgotten 40 shows these children and their families that somebody cares, by giving money to the schools and communities that need it the most. Unfortunately, due to current economic pressures, that need is getting more desperate, with many families across the UK struggling to make ends meet. INEOS’ renewed support will ensure that schools can continue to provide vital help and give children the best possible start in life.”
The funding has enabled schools to meet a range of needs – from providing necessities like food and clothing, to funding mental health support, family outreach, and enrichment experiences designed to give children opportunities they might not otherwise have.
Today, headteachers from the participating schools convened at Old Trafford, Manchester, for their annual Forgotten 40 conference. The annual gathering provides a chance for those involved in the project to reflect on the programme’s impact, share strategies for tackling shared community challenges with a focus on mental health, learning and personal development, and the impact of Ofsted inspections.
The discussions reaffirmed the importance of trusting schools to deliver what their communities need most – and the power of long-term, flexible funding in changing outcomes for children growing up in poverty.
