Case Studies
Law Firm backing Wheelchair Athletes
Local law firm Ashton Morton Slack has given £1330 from their fund with South Yorkshire Community Foundation to the Sheffield Steelers Wheelchair Basketball Club.
They were moved to support the club to buy equipment for wheelchairs required to run taster sessions of wheelchair basketball in schools when they saw the positive impact the taster sessions have had on the lives of many disabled schoolchildren, who can often feel excluded. The sessions provide practical opportunities for disabled and non-disabled children to take part in wheelchair basketball.
Sheffield Steelers Wheelchair Basketball Club is based at the Northern General Hospital and members come from all over South Yorkshire. The club, run by disabled and non-disabled volunteers, encourages people of all ages and all abilities to become fully involved in the organisation of the club. They run five teams that compete in the GB Wheelchair Basketball Association National and Super league competitions and have many experienced players including paralympians who are fantastic role models for developing and newly injured players.
The taster sessions in schools are part of the Leader programme run by the club, which encourages more disabled young people to become physically active through participating in wheelchair basketball. Funding for this was also received from Awards for All and the Local Network Fund for Children and Young People.
The 'Inclusive Zone Basketball' Championship at the English Institute of Sport was the climax of all the school development work the Steelers have been delivering. Inclusive Zone Basketball is a combination of running and wheelchair basketball, which brings disabled and non-disabled people together in this exciting new game. The championship was the first to be held anywhere in the UK and is now being used as a model by the Great Britain Wheelchair Basketball Association, with interest from other countries, as an innovative way to promote inclusion.
Pauline Grice, Chief Executive of the South Yorkshire Community Foundation, said: "We are delighted to support such an exciting project that has pioneered new ideas for creating a positive impact on the lives of disabled children and to be able to link Ashton Morton Slack's Fund, through our professional grant making service, to such an innovative and inclusive community organisation."
Lisa Cooke, Marketing and Events Manager from Ashton Morton Slack said: "It is fantastic to help support such a wonderful and exciting project that is having so much impact on the lives of disabled and non-disabled children."
Atkinson Smith Challenge Day
Redecorating Yorkshire Main Community Centre.
Atkinson Smith rose to the challenge of providing volunteers to help the Yorkshire Main Community Centre to redecorate their community hall.
The Yorkshire Main Community Centre is a widely used community facility for Edlington, providing affordable community space. Over 500 people make use of the centre each week, with over 11 regular group activities ranging from Art Classes, IT Courses, Dancing School, Keep fit and a Teeny Tots Playgroup. All ages are beneficiaries of the activities from pre school to retirement age.
A programme of renovation has been ongoing to upgrade the facilities for the local community, including new toilets and a kitchen, provided by grants from SRB and the South Yorkshire Community Foundation.
Andrew Glover, Centre Manager, said. " It is fantastic to have such enthusiastic volunteers to help with our final piece in the jigsaw. The hall has not been painted for over 5 years and is in desperate need of a new coat of paint. All our users will greatly appreciate the help of Atkinson Smith and the difference that the redecoration has made. It's a great improvement! The image of the centre has been greatly enhanced and could lead to more private bookings to improve our income and sustainability."
The team from Atkinson Smith was lead and coordinated by Jo Clarkson and included John Whiteley, Louise Addison, Ann Granter, Charles Wright and two smaller assistants, Ashley and Jordon Granter.
Everyone was busy with paint brushes in hand to paint the walls and wood work. Jo said. " It has been a fantastic opportunity to give hands on practical help to a local group to compliment the financial support the company provides to community projects. It was lovely to see the transformation you can actually make in one day and we managed to have a bit of fun too! "
Friends of Thornhill School
Building the capacity of charities and community projects.
Colin Martin said: 'It is important to give children a sense of belonging and opportunities that will build their confidence and teach them respect for others. As well as the Wednesday drama group we run a music group on a Friday and they have aspirations of starting a school band before the end of the year.'
Rob Hannon, President, Rotherham Chamber of Commerce said: "It is so important to support our local community and this is just one example where extra curricula activity is making a real difference to the pupils of Thornhill School. The dedication and commitment of Amanda Benton was reflected in the enthusiasm and energy displayed by the kids who without doubt were enjoying every minute of their performance as did we all."
Since receiving the grant from the Community Foundation the group have gone on to access further funding for musical instruments for after school music workshops in partnership with local organisation Get Sorted Music Academy.
As a result of the increased capacity and confidence of the management committee, they are now hoping to involve more people from the community by organising events such as Keep Fit.
Gillian Smith, Secretary of Friends of Thornhill said. " We would like to get more parents involved with activities in school and if we can organise more clubs we might be able to do this."
Whirlow Hall Farm
Building the capacity of charities and community projects.
A grant of £15,000 was made by Keepmoat and Capacity Builders to provide new heating, insulation and windows in class rooms used for educational lessons at Whirlow Hall Farm. The grant will have a significant impact on the services Whirlow Hall Farm provide for children and young people and to the charities long term sustainability. Bridget Evans, Chief Executive said. " Not only will we be able to provide decent class rooms so children do not feel cold but also heated rooms can be used as a resource and rented out to help with our self sufficiency and need to increase our income. "
Steve Howe, Executive Advisor from Keepmoat was delighted to visit the project and see children on a residential trip. After spending some time talking to the children said. " This is an ideal project that has enabled Keepmoat to influence the lives of so many young people in a practical hands on way."
The pictures are activities in progress as children from Woodhouse Primary School dig up potatoes and onions and learn about farming and food production. The six year old children are on a two and a half day residential trip to widen their social experience and learn about farming and the outdoors.
Liz Kirkham. Key Stage One Coordinator at the school said. " This is a great opportunity for children to do things that they do not normally experience. A lot do not have the opportunity to visit the country side or stay away from home."
Conisbrough and Denaby Main Group.
Challenge Day.
Entour, in association with the Conisbrough and Denaby Main Festival Group entered the Challenge Events to improve the path of a significant tourist trail in Conisbrough.
On the day the community groups rounded up over 50 volunteers from the local community and council to lay over 70 metres of new path and renovate over 70 metres of existing path that connects Conisbrough Castle to the River Don, Trans Pennine way and Don Gorge. The groups are dedicated to improving the areas tourist potential as a replacement to the lost mining in the area.
The Challenge is building on over 3 years of voluntary action in the area and will be a major step forward in the groups aspirations for the site.
Pauline Grice, Chief Executive of the Community Foundation volunteered on the day and said, " This was a really good way to link people who care to causes that matter and experience the passionate commitment of community volunteers making a real difference. The weather was very kind and the 50 volunteers on the day learned a great deal about what makes a community work well together. With the creation of a path suitable for wheelchairs and the clearance of weeds and rubbish left following the floods, the end result was fantastic and a significant boost to the group for a very minimal investment."
