As part of Prime Minister David Cameron’s Big Society initiative, we are all being encouraged to engage more with our local communities in a variety of ways.

Many people have their favourite charities, often major national concerns and high profile causes which they have chosen for a variety of reasons.

But closer to home there are a wealth of good causes crying out for support which is not necessarily forthcoming due to a lack of awareness.

One way of discovering more about such concerns is through the Oxfordshire Community Foundation (OCF) which gives grants from benefactors to a clutch of good causes that may otherwise miss out on a valuable finding resource.

Chief executive Jayne Woodley said: “Our expertise lies in the knowledge we have of local voluntary community groups in Oxfordshire and the impact they are having.

What we are trying to do is show people there are other ways of thinking locally and giving locally. We are trying to make giving more meaningful and strategic,” he added.

Causes include east Oxford mental health charity Restore, the Oxfordshire Citizens’ Advice Bureau and green group Sustainable Kirtlington, although Ms Woodley estimates there are 4,000 charities and community groups within the county, some of which have as few as two or three volunteers.

Formed 16 years ago, OCF has since then contributed more than £3m to community projects, supported more than 1100 local organisations, awarded more than 1,300 grants and built endowment funds of £1.6m.

Ms Woodley said OCF now reaches about 40 per cent of the county’s population in some way Traditionally, some cash has come from Government grants, but with central funding under pressure, the aim is to replace that totally with cash raised locally.

Recently it was announced OCF will be administering the Midcounties Co-operative Community Fund in Oxfordshire, worth £250,000, which is now open to grant applications from local voluntary/community organisations.

Ms Woodley, who spent 22 years as a corporate relationship director at Barclays in Oxford before “handing in the company car keys,” was appointed last October and is determined to drive the organisation forward in terms of profile and impact.

“It is about being smarter, working with people and understanding how they can help,” she said.

One way of doing that is encouraging more businesses to get on board.

With corporate social responsibility now high on the agenda of most firms, managers are keen to see their organisations supporting charities and it makes sense for them to be backing local concerns.

Through OCF charities can pitch to potential investors and once successful can work directly with them.

A problem with many smaller charities is that they lack the marketing and financial clout to raise their profile.

OCF is one of 26 foundations that has signed up to Localgivingcom, an organisation set up by millionaire entrepreneur Marcelle Spencer which helps smaller causes boost their profile, for example by creating a web page for them through which they can raise cash and advertise for volunteers.

And while the foundations are set up to help high net worth individuals give money to charity, Localgiving.com allows the average person to make a donation to a range of charities of their choice. The average contribution is about £40.

An example on the website is Chinnor Village Centre which offers respite care for the elderly and families who look after relatives at home.

Laura Packer, charity engagement assistant at Localgiving.com, said: “The aim is for people to find charities or community groups close to where they live and support them.”

Recently, OCF threw a party outside its offices in Woodin’s Way to mark Small Charity Week.

Among the charities at the event was the Wallingford-based Everyone’s An Artist community group which allows disadvantaged people and those with disabilities to showcase their musical or artistic talents.

Co-founder Janey Carline said: “We have been very fortunate as we received a £1500 grant from the Community Foundation which bought us a lot of equipment and helped pay expenses and mileage for our volunteers.

“Even small sums of money are very welcome to us.”

Gemma Humphrey, external relations officer with Cowley-based mental health charity Restore, added: “Although we are in a robust position compared to some charities, we are having trouble meeting core costs this year.

“At the moment it is really challenging for smaller charities and we have to be more creative in thinking of different ways of raising money. We really hope local people will support us through the new website.”

The localgiving.com site aims to allow more charities the chance to create their own web page, giving them an online presence for the first time.

Ms Woodley added: “People wanting to donate now have the opportunity of working with some really diverse local groups who they otherwise would not have heard of.”

Name: Oxfordshire Community Foundation Established: 1995 Chief executive: Jayne Woodley Number of staff: 1 full-time, 2 part-time Annual turnover: £1m (predicted)

Contact: 01865 798666 Web: www.oxfordshire.org www.localgiving.com