Guild Care Blog

Kids size collection boxes for the Ashdown Club a very special service

It was lots of fun as the children of our Ashdown Club launched their own appeal on Friday 16 April to raise funds. The club which has been open for over 10 years offers respite breaks for children with disabilities such as Autism, Cerebral Palsy and Downs Syndrome.

The children took centre stage to be photographed for the Worthing Herald and the Argus newspapers with the colourful collection boxes which are hoped to raise £20,000 this year.

Ashdown needs to raise the money to help with the overall costs which include petrol for the minibuses to take the children out on trips; cost of entry fees to cinemas, bowling, farms, the circus, museums etc; maintenance costs for the building as well as some staffing costs.

As a charity, we are continually fundraising for this special service as there is always a deficit at the end of the year. It is difficult to fully cover the costs involved with helping children with disabilities. To run the service a children's nurse is needed for some sessions and all the staff and volunteers have to undergo special training. Activities such as music therapy and summer events can be funded through different schemes but it is the general day-to-day running costs that often cannot be covered by a grant.

The mini collection boxes are designed to collect small change and each box can contain up to £5 of small coins. They are available to pick up at all Guild Care Charity shops and by phoning the fundraising team on 01903 528630.

Wherever you turned over Easter there was something happening.

At Ashmount Nursing Home 20 residents had spent weeks making Easter bonnets and what a delight they were. Goodwood would have been put to shame if our Ashmount ladies had turned out on Race Day.

Bonnets were also the order of the day at the Lovett Centre. It was very difficult to judge the winners as there were 25 to choose from all beautifully decorated with chicks, eggs and flowers.

The Healthy Living Centre ladies also came up trumps with some truly wonderful hats and Barbara Virgoe won the art group's Easter Card competition.

Just prior to Easter music students from Christ's Hospital and their Director of Music Adrian Bawtree entertained Healthy Living Centre service users. Adrian had been instrumental in Guild Care's 75th Anniversary Concert and the 'Rattle and Roll' singers were thrilled by his visit. They needed little encouragement to burst into some old favourites directed by their favourite Director of Music.

It was a great evening at the Splash Awards 2010, and no - nothing to do with swimming! Worthing's sparkling local radio station SplashFM hosts this brilliant awards evening annually recognising the top people and businesses in the town. The glittering evening at the iconic Dome on the seafront awarded Best Pub, Mum of the Year, Charity of the Year, Best Friend, Lifetime Achievement, Courage Award, Gold Award, Best New Business, Top Teacher, Sporting Star and Sporting Team, Best Business, Dad of the Year and Fundraiser of the Year!

We were thrilled when Guild Care Fundraisers Peter Kennard and Derek Steel were chosen as joint Fundraisers of the Year. Peter has been a Trustee since January 2007 and has spent much of his spare time organising some excellent events with his fundraising partner Derek Steel. This awesome duo have helped raise over £33,000 for us during the past three years and still find time to run their local businesses H.D.Tribe and Jacobs Steel.

Listen to what Nicola Willett (Fundraising Manager) had to say about them courtesy of SplashFM.

Check out all the winners on the SplashFM website

It's been an incredibly busy week at Guild Care.

On Tuesday we celebrated a 100th birthday at the Healthy Living Centre. Zoe, from Findon, pops in twice a week for art and poetry classes and to catch up with friends. She was surprised with a large bouquet of flowers and an enormous birthday cake baked by Nina, our HLC chef.

On Thursday we held a Recruitment Day for new staff and were surprised by the huge number of applicants that poured through our doors. After seeing over 170 between the hours of 9.30am and 8.00pm we were really relieved to call it a day.

Many thanks to everyone who came along, it will take a few days to sift through the applications and the HR department will be in touch soon.

Well, we didn’t win but it was the taking part that mattered…and, of course, the sponsorship!

Today Guild Care launched a £100,000 appeal for our Healthy Living Programme run at the Healthy Living Centre, Methold House, Worthing and the Lovett Centre in Goring-by-Sea.

Over 60 older people who benefit from the innovative programme enjoyed a dramatised performance by professional Sussex storyteller, Jamie Crawford.

The appeal was launched as part of National Storytelling Week and, every month for the next year, will feature a story on one of our service users. The Healthy Living Programme encourages wellbeing, fitness and quality of life through exercise, therapies, crafts, games, support and information.

Over 400 older people and carers up to the age of 99 participate in the programme over the year; with an average of over 70 a day across both centres. The programme also supports outreach work and health awareness raising events in the community, reaching many more.

This appeal will enable our charity to sustain the existing programme which is so vital to older people in the community. The target of £100K for the Healthy Living Programme, to cover the 2010 shortfall, will be split between trust fundraising applications and community fundraising. We really hope the local community and businesses will support us in 2010.