Summer Grant Round 2016

A HUGE thank you for all your fundraising that has contributed towards the Summer Grant Round. Look at all these amazing children and causes you have managed to help!

Two Boys

The twin boys have both been diagnosed with Epilepsy and Autism which affects their social communication and physical skills. Specialist car seats have been advised for both boys by the In Car Safety Centre at the Children’s Therapy Centre, after an assessment was carried out. These types of equipment are not funded by the Centres Community Equipment Stores or the Statutory services. These car seats will help to keep both of the boys safe whilst being transported, especially if one was to have a seizure whilst in the car.

St Vincent’s Furniture Store

The organisation provides essential; furniture and household items free of charge to those in need. Funding is to buy items for the ‘New Start’ packs. The packs are made up of a bed with bed linen, a two ring portable electric hob cooker, cutlery and crockery sets. The majority of referred clients are single parents with babies or young children and many are victims of physical abuse or domestic violence.

Friends of St Giles School

The organisation is a charity run by the parents and carers of the children who attend ST Giles SEN School. The group raises funds to purchase products that will benefit the children in the school, this includes sensory equipment, iPads, mobile safe rooms and specialist tricycles. They have done fundraising events, bag packs and held stalls at fairs. They are applying for the funds for three specialist trikes. These bikes will bring joy to the children and will allow those that can’t peddle by themselves to have the sensory feedback of what it feels like. The families of these children do not have the space to store this type of item at home, so it is something the children can only use when they are at school.

Therapies for Anxiety, Depression and Stress

An emotional wellbeing centre for children aged between 11 and 18. They provide drop in sessions and counselling for young people. The grant is to take a group of 20 to Alton Towers, the children have grown really close and all support each other on a daily basis. The group have asked if they could go to Alton Towers together, they have carried out their own fundraising activities to raise some of the money. Cash for Kids part funded this project, covering transport costs for the children.

St Leger Homes of Doncaster

They are working on a project with young people in Doncaster called Creative Education. This will engage children in a creative way, whilst developing their skills and knowledge, in Maths and English particularly. The project also aims to build and increase confidence, raise aspirations and provide volunteer engagement opportunities. The grant is for a variety of arts and crafts equipment.

Rotherham & Barnsley Mind

The organisation would like to pilot a package of support for children experiencing mental ill health and emotional distress. This will be done through a therapy called talk and build, for this the talk and build equipment needs to be purchased and additional training for staff is needed. They also want to purchase a results based monitoring tool called Outcomes Star. This project will provide coping strategies for future challenges, help them cope with day to day challenges, provide comfort, support, happiness and safety, develop stronger mental health well-being and emotional resilience, skill development and visual monitoring tools which will show their progress and how to deal with setbacks. They run a similar session to this at the Rotherham centre which is very successful, so they are wanting to extend this to their Doncaster centre.

The Story of Books

The aim of these books is to help children aged between 3 and 11 years with the bereavement process after losing a member of the family. The books are written and illustrated to represent real people. The books help children to understand grief and how to deal with it. The books are about remembering that special person and to help their memory live on with the child. It also encourages children to discuss their feelings with their parent, teacher, carer etc. when they read the books together.

Norfolk Park Tenants and Residents Association

The association is in Norfolk Park Estate, an area which is in the bottom 20% of the most deprived areas in the UK. The Arbourthorne ward has the 3rd worst child well-being stats in Sheffield and the 5th highest rates of children living in poverty. Many of the local families cannot afford to take their children to visit Santa in his Grotto in a shop, supermarket etc. Each year the group puts on a Christmas cracker event. The event has a range of craft activities, face painting, balloon modelling, information stalls and other local groups offering information or activities. The event also has a Santa’s grotto, where each child will receive an age appropriate book as their gift.

Pitsmoor Adventure Playground

The funding is for a photography project, ‘What My Community Means to Me’. The children who use the playground will express what their community means to them through the medium of photography, culminating in a City Centre Exhibition. The children will develop skills such as practical photography and communication and it will allow them to document their stories. They will also gain an insight into what they value about their community and the playground. The exhibition will bring their stories to a Sheffield wide audience and challenge preconceptions about the children of Pitsmoor.

Endeavour

They are a small charity that work with children and young people who are disadvantaged and disengaged from society. They offer personal development programmes to ensure the children can improve their lives, through outdoor challenge activities, creative activities, classroom based learning and experiential learning. The funding is for a project for children who are unable to access or missing from mainstream education. They want to start a project where the children can come together and create music (after school or at dinner for those that are in education). Many of the children they work with are musical but do not have the budget to purchase these items. The grant is for a selection of music instruments and equipment.

Three boys

The boys all have autism, with one of the boys also being partially deaf in both ears, having eye mucus problems and development delay. This child uses the sensory room a lot at school to allow himself to become calm and to focus on other things. The application is for a sensory room for the boys, as this will allow them to have a safe space to go to when they are upset and they can use the equipment in a therapeutic way. Having this space will also allow them to be able to go to their own space and calm down without affecting the others.

Pops Summer Camp

Pops Summer Camp provide an outreach service to young people living in and around the Rawmarsh area. They provide them with a safe, fun and engaging environment where they can reach their full potential. The grant is for equipment that would enable them to offer unique and engaging physical pioneering activities which would teach the participants to build a pioneering construction using knots and lashings. It will encourage teamwork, improve self-confidence and reduce isolation.

Boy

This boy has right Temporal Parietal Porencephalic Cyst with associated Left Hemiplegic Cerebral Palsy and severe Retinopathy of Prematurity. He is totally dependent on an adult for all activities of daily living. Application is for a Convaid cruiser as this will allow him to participate in family activities and is more practical than a wheelchair.

Judith House Refuge

Judith House is a refuge centre for women and their children who have had to flee their homes. When the families fled their homes, they did so with no belongings. The centre wants to make the families stay at the refuge as comfortable and as enjoyable as possible. The application is for items to make outside and indoor play as much fun as possible.

Boy

The child has a diagnosis of Autism and Sensory Processing Disorder, because of this he faces many challenges. This causes him severe distress and anxiety, so his mum would like to provide him with some sensory equipment to help combat a lot of his issues. This will help him to remain calm and relaxed. This equipment will allow him to have sensory input every day, something that he craves.

Doncaster Foster Carers Association

The organisation is applying for funds to purchase a marquee. This will allow them to raise money to support themselves - providing sustainability - by attending fun days and galas with their own stall. They would have activities such as tombola’s, cake sales etc. The foster careers have already agreed to donate prizes to the tombola and have offered to bake.

Sharrow Community Forum

The organisation provides children and young people with a positive, safe and stimulating environment where they can learn new skills and develop abilities. It has been in place for over 40 years and is a core resource to supporting the community, bringing families together who are from a broad mix of cultural background. The children take part in activities that provide increased options, offer opportunities to integrate with one another, form relationships, learn new skills and discover choices for their social lives. The organisation wants to provide the children with a series of drop in sessions throughout the summer. The project will be around the local history of the region, activities will include taking photographs of old Sheffield playgrounds and then building models of old play equipment with craft based products. The young people will then create a display of materials and photographs of the local area that will go into an exhibition.

Park Community Action

Park Community Action is a local forum made up of local volunteers, whose focus is to provide opportunities for a better community for people living and working in the area. The funding would be used to set up a homework corner, consumable materials for craft and cooking materials. This project will allow children and young people to develop both socially and educationally. They will learn new skills and participate in something positive. This provides the children with somewhere safe and warm to go and with something to do.

Boy

The boy is an extremely active young boy with ASD, suspected ADHD, sleep disorder and he does not communicate in any way. He has also been diagnosed with sensory processing disorder which causes him to be in constant movement to make sure he does not feel sick. The car is one place, because of the constant movement, that he feels comfortable. However, he does not like to sit still for long periods of time and can wriggle out of the normal seat belt. For this reason, the child’s mum is applying for a 5-point harness that he will be unable to climb out of, whilst it is still comfortable for him. He enjoys day trips, something which they can do on a more regular basis with this. The family are also expecting a baby girl this summer, this harness will ensure both children’s safety when travelling in a car.

Buzz

Buzz supports children and families via a wide range of activities and clubs. They have developed the trust of both families and children and have opened communication channels with a previously isolated community. Many of whom are from asylum seeker, refugee, black and minority ethnic communities. The application is for a variety of items that will help support children with additional needs, particularly Autism, that attend the centre. The emotions keyrings and behaviour discussions set are a great way for the children to express their feelings visually, especially for those with Autism or who have English as their second language. The timetable will be good for children with autism, who rely heavily on following a routine. The talk ball will be good for the children who have trouble expressing their feelings and learn about listening to others and the recordable buttons will allow children to listen to messages in their own time, learning and understanding key words. Finally, the communicate in print widget is an online package aimed at supporting children with additional needs. It creates an image for each word, allowing the children to recognise a picture and associate it with a word.

Sparkle Sheffield

Sparkle works with families who have children with Autism. The organisation provides monthly parental support groups, where they teach and educate the parents about what strategies they can put in place to improve communication with their child. Whilst the parents are in this session, the children go to the other room in the centre where they are kept occupied by the staff, this allows the parents to take notes, without being disturbed. The application is for pop up sensory pods, which can be moved around due to them being portable.

Handmade Cinema CIC

Handmade Cinema takes pop up cinemas to various venues across Sheffield, where the communities would not go to the cinema due to it being too costly or because the children have additional needs, meaning the traditional cinema is just not suited to them. They create a cinema screening that is accessible and enjoyable for all, by creating light, open, sensory environments that can engage everyone. The organisation has been approached by Artfelt to create a screening for children who are currently residing in and receiving treatment in the Sheffield Children’s Hospital. This will allow the children to have fun and escape the four walls of their hospital room for the afternoon. An accompanying art workshop will allow them to interact with the film as well as actively contribute to transforming the space.

Rotherham Rise

Rotherham Rise provides support for women and their children affected by domestic and sexual abuse through providing safe refuge accommodation and outreach support services. They have a new and developing community centre which provides a one stop shop for advice and information for women and children, particularly those who are suffering or have suffered domestic abuse and sexual exploitation. When women and their children arrive at the refuge they have had to leave all their belongings behind, the centre is applying for a variety of items that will make the refuge more ‘homely’ by having the basic items a child/young person should have.

The Link Community

The organisation wants to make art accessible and inclusive to all the young people in the deprived area in which they work, they want to connect people to arts and culture and encourage independent thinking skills and to develop creative leadership. They want to bring the young people together to create a large outdoor mural depicting life on the estate. The project will mean that the young people involved can connect to arts and cultures in a fun secure environment, whilst gaining new skills and be encouraged to take on leadership roles. The project will also give them a sense of community pride and worth. The children will also have the opportunity to complete their bronze/silver arts award which will improve their education opportunities and increase employability.

Boy

This child has CHARGE Syndrome, a recognisable pattern of birth defects, it is an extremely complex syndrome that involves extensive medical and physical difficulties that differ in each child and makes their future very uncertain. Due to his condition, he requires constant care, this means his parents are both unable to work full time, which is causing financial issue for the family. He spends a lot of his time playing on the floor, but on a poor quality carpet which is why the family are applying for a new carpet to be fitted. He also has a mattress that needs replacing, this is effecting how well he sleeps and him achieving his full potential when awake.

Darnall Community Nursery

The Darnall ward has the 3rd highest percentage of children living in poverty in Sheffield and it is one of the most culturally diverse communities, where English is the second language for a lot of children. The nursery would like to create a project called ‘Creative Voices’, this will involve creating a unique indoor sensory and creative art space equipped with sand and water play, sensory and creative art on a very large scale. This space will allow the children to explore and express themselves without the restrictions that the current area has in regards to space and mess. Their aim is to give the children a voice through their creativity and participation in activities that reflect their own individuality and abilities.