Garden studio appeal
This year our Christmas appeal is very different to any that we have held before, and perhaps not unsurprisingly is linked to the effects that this year’s awful pandemic has had on the services that we provide.
As you will know our Opportunity Without Limits day service supports 305 disabled adults who all have a learning disability, some with the addition of a physical disability and / or a mental health condition. Customer’s disabilities vary from mild to complex. Examples of their disabilities include; Global Developmental Delay, Downs Syndrome, Challenging Behaviours, Autism and Asperger’s Syndrome, Cerebral Palsy and Paraplegia.
In March 2020, all of our buildings had to close. Almost overnight we replaced the support for our customers with zoom activities, welfare calls, face to face support and doorstep activities.
In July we were finally able to start reopening our centres, which although fantastic, due to social distancing guidelines this is on a much reduced capacity. This means that we have only been able to welcome around 40% of our customers to resume face to face activities.
Whilst we continue to support our customers who are unable to attend face to face activities, through virtual activities, one to one sessions and door step activities, we are hearing more and more that what they really want is to be back with their peers; that nothing replaces physical interaction and that they are feeling isolated in the confines of their own homes.
Whilst we literally do not have the inside space to accommodate all of our customers at the moment – we have found a solution to this problem, that we are asking for your help with.
We would like to build a garden studio in the grounds of our Cambridge, Ipswich and Basildon centres, similar to the one in the photograph below. The building will enable us to accommodate a further 48 customers every week (based on an average 2.5 day attendance) and we are asking for your support to enable us to purchase, build and equip a 4m x 9m fully weatherproof, fully accessible studio. The cost of this project is £90,000 – we will also be seeking funding from a variety of other sources including corporate supporters, trusts and grant making bodies.
Cheques can be sent to Papworth Trust, 1 Saxongate, Bradbury Place, Huntingdon, PE29 3RR or by Bacs payment to Papworth Trust Appeal Fund Account Sort code: 20-17-68 Account No: 20699357 using the reference ‘garden studio’.
Our staff and customers would be most grateful for any support that you can give, on behalf of us all – a very big thank you!
*The actual garden room will be c. 2x the size of the example above
There is still a long road ahead for the Trust as we try to recover from the impact that the coronavirus lockdown has had on our ability to raise funds in the usual manner, through events and activities.
We still need your support, to ensure that we are here to support our customers through virtual sessions that we will run alongside our reduced face to face activity programme, where we will only be able to accommodate around 40% of our customers in day centres. If you can, please support us today by making a donation at www.justgiving.com/campaign/PapworthTrust
Whether you're working remotely or are now moving back to business, there are many ways you can support Papworth Trust. Whether through remote and virtual staff fundraising activities, shopping with Amazon Smile or making a donation to support our continuing work with local disabled people - read on for more ideas!
Click the link below to see how you can get involved:
