Local companies raise money to keep hearts beating in Essex
21st September 2022
Local companies, brought together by Chelmsford-based business, Real8 Group who are a chartered town planning, quantity surveying and project management company, will help keep hearts beating in Essex after raising over £10,000 for a local charity.
The event, which was held at Chelmsford Golf Club, raised money for the Essex Heart Fund (EHF), which is managed by the local independent charitable trust, Essex Community Foundation.
Paul Calder, Director at Real8 said, “We were overwhelmed by the support we received. All 18 holes of the course were sponsored, and 13 local companies entered teams. Everyone who contributed and took part was so generous which made for a great day, and the sun shone too which was a bonus.”
The winners of the day were Elwell Taylor in first place with 89 points, followed by Phoenix Compaction Systems and Horizon Construction.
Adam French from Horizon Construction won nearest the pin on the 9th hole and Paul Beresford just missed out on a ‘hole in one’ to be nearest the pin on the 18th.
Companies that supported the event included Academia, Applied Acoustic Design, A W Hardy, Beresfords, Colchester Environmental Ltd (CSH), Cunningtons LLP, Elwell Taylor, Green Recycling, Horizon Construction Group, Mersea Homes, Phoenix Compaction Systems, Precise Security, The Grange Group, RX Architects, Scene Architects and WellMax Scaffolding.
A key fundraising activity of the day was the ‘wheelie-bin challenge’ arranged by Green Recycling. Golfers were invited to test their skills and chip a golf ball into a recycling bin from a distance. Those that were successful secured a donation of £50 the EHF and £50 for themselves. The generosity of those involved on the day was evident as those who won, also donated their winnings to the charity.
Dr Gerald Clesham, a heart consultant at the Cardiothoracic Centre in Basildon and one of the founders of the Essex Heart Fund said, “Our huge thanks to Paul Calder and the Real8 team who did a lot of hard work to organise an excellent day. We are grateful to all the companies who sponsored holes and took part, raising an amazing amount of money.
“Events like this help us raise awareness of the Essex Heart Fund and the work that we do to improve the care of cardiac patients in Essex. We want to help develop the best treatments for our patients, support them after they have left hospital and fund research-based projects to invest in the future”.
To find out more about Essex Heart Fund, visit www.essexheartfund.org.uk. For information on how to donate, call 01245 355947.
Southend-on-Sea charities receive wave of support
20th September 2022
Southend Mencap, Southend In Sight, Send the Right Message and Shoeburyness Residents Association are among 12 voluntary and community organisations to receive a much-needed funding boost from the Southend Community Fund.
Grants totalling £40,000 were awarded from the Fund, which was set up in 2001 with the independent charitable trust, Essex Community Foundation (ECF). A panel, made up of local people, works with ECF to consider applications and agree the grants to be awarded each year.
Southend Mencap will use their grant of £3,500 to run a drama-based project called ‘Showstoppers’ that helps students to build confidence and addresses a wide range of issues that adults with learning disabilities may experience.
Southend In Sight received a grant of £4,048, to support the well-being of people with sight loss or visual impairment who have been greatly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Catherine Hodgson, the organisation’s community fundraiser said: “We are so grateful to receive this funding boost. Over the past two years we have seen a steep rise in our utility bills, insurance premiums and other costs. On top of that we have a leaking roof that needs repairing and our boiler has been condemned.
“Knowing we have this grant towards our running costs means we can focus on getting the repairs done and supporting our clients.”
Send the Right Message received £3,500 to enhance the well-being of children, young people, and adults with special educational needs and learning difficulties. They hope to expand their services in the coming year.
This year, the panel were pleased to award £2,800 to Shoeburyness Residents Association for an innovative solar powered “talking bench” on Shoebury East beach.
Other local charities benefiting from grants awarded from the Fund this year were:
- Southend Rugby Football Club (1870) Limited received £1,000 towards a rugby project for young people with special educational needs and disabilities.
- Get The Kids Out received £2,000 towards weekly sports sessions for children.
- South Essex Advocacy Services received £2,000 towards the costs of advocacy training and qualifications for three volunteers.
- Welcome to the UK received £2,000 towards the costs of developing a new community space and increasing the number of English as a Second Language lessons on offer to migrants.
- Wellbeing at Garon Park CIO received £2,000 for a community event celebrating the Queen’s Jubilee and showcasing the facilities at Garon Park.
- Shoeburyness & Thorpe Bay Baptist Church received £2,600 towards activity sessions including general fitness classes and afternoon tea for those with dementia.
- The One Love Project received £4,711 for the salary of a new part-time admin and bookkeeping post at an organisation supporting homeless people.
- Vincent De Paul Society received £7,590 to set up a database and pay for three year’s subscription costs.
Andy Payne Worpole, Head of Programmes at ECF, said: “These latest grants reflect the diversity of Southend and the needs of local people. They are helping to improve wellbeing and are supporting one-off projects, but there is also a recognition of the importance of contributing to an organisation’s core running costs.
“As well as awarding grants annually, the Fund offers an opportunity to people who want to give back to their local community. Donations can be made as a one-off or regular gift, but gifts of shares can be accepted, or you can speak to your professional adviser about leaving a legacy in your will.
“Dormant or inactive trusts can also be transferred into the Fund. While the trust is reinvigorated for the benefit of future generations, the trustees can remain involved as advisers, but without the legal and financial responsibility and the original intentions of the trust can continue.”
If you would like to talk about giving to the Southend Community Fund, please contact Perry Norton, Head of Development, at ECF on 01245 355947 or perry@essexcf.org.uk.
Community Cares Fund hands out £35,000 to good causes in Essex
Funding totalling £35,000 has been awarded by the East of England Co-op though its Community Cares Fund to 9 organisations supporting the community in Essex. Grants ranged between £1,000 and £5,000 and are expected to directly benefit more than 3,000 local people.
The region’s largest independent retailer, the East of England Co-op, set-up the fund in April 2020 and with this latest round has supported local communities across the region with donations of more than £591,000 to date. There are two funding rounds annually and the East of England Co-op is set to open applications for the next round of funding on 19 September.
The ‘Community Cares Fund’ receives applications for funding across three pillars – community action, food justice, and mental health and well-being. Grants awarded under mental health and well-being across the region account for 76% of the total fund awarded this round, a sharp rise from the average of 54%.
Niall O’Keeffe, joint chief executive of the East of England Co-op commented: “With this round of funding we have been able to respond to the profound need of those affected by the cost-of-living crisis. As we head into the more difficult winter months ahead, the mental health fallout from the financial difficulties many are expected to experience will be sharp. Many of the grants awarded will go directly to supporting vulnerable local people during this difficult time.”
Among the beneficiaries this round is the Little Explores Preschool in Greenstead, who have received a grant for a new project to introduce young children to new food and teach them about healthy eating and food production, as well the importance of good oral health.
Rachel Eaton, manager at Little Explorers Preschool, said: “We are so excited to receive this funding from the East of England Co-op. It is giving us the opportunity to talk about healthy eating and good oral care in really fun, new ways.
“We will be improving our garden area so the children will have the opportunity to grow food and maybe take some home too! Since the pandemic, many parents have also found it difficult to find dentists. So, alongside growing and eating fruit and veg, we will be providing toothbrushes and teaching the children about good oral health too. The impact will be long-lasting. We are hoping that by learning about healthy choices now, the children will continue to do so throughout their adult lives too. Both the team and our children cannot wait to get started with this project; it will make such a difference.”
Funding for the Community Cares Fund is supplemented by East of England Co-op members who contribute to the fund. Niall added: “To everyone who has donated to the Community Cares Fund, thank you. It continues to make a very real difference to people in your community. We urge other members and customers to donate in store – one easy option is to donate your dividend payment.”
The East of England Co-op works with the Essex Community Foundation (ECF) to distribute and deliver the Community Cares Fund.
The deadline to apply for their next funding round passed on 10 October at 5pm.
If you have any questions or would like to discuss your charitable work, please call the ECF grants team on 01245 356018 or email grants@essexcf.org.uk.
Our condolences to The Royal Family
9th September 2022
It is with great sadness that we have learnt of the passing of Her Majesty The Queen.
Her Majesty devoted the past 70 years to serving her country and, throughout her reign, was patron to over 600 charities.
Her visits to see the work of Essex charities were always much looked forward to and enjoyed. Her Majesty was an inspiration to many and she had a deep sense of the importance of communities and the role of the voluntary sector.
Her death comes at a difficult time for many and we remain committed to doing all we can to support those in need and offering people who want to help others, the means to do so.
We send our deepest sympathies and heartfelt condolences to The Royal Family at this difficult time.
A message from HM Lord-Lieutenant of Essex, and our Patron, Jennifer Tolhurst:
This is a day of great sadness for the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth.
The death of Her Majesty the Queen marks the passing of the Head of a worldwide family of over 2.5 billion people. It was an extraordinarily long reign, the longest of any British Sovereign and we have been extremely fortunate to have in our Queen an outstanding example of service both in wartime and peacetime.
HM The Queen has been a symbol of stability throughout decades in which the world has seen very many changes, and for 73 years of her life, The Queen supported by HRH The Duke of Edinburgh who The Queen described as “her strength and stay”.
One of her most recent visits to Essex was to Chelmsford Cathedral to mark the 100 years of the Chelmsford Diocese. Hundreds of well-wishers came to great HM The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh as they always did when The Queen visited.
We want to send our very deepest condolences to all members of the Royal Family at this sad and momentous time as we look back with deep gratitude and we look forward to offering our support and loyalty to The King.
Rural community gains lifesaving equipment
24th August 2022
A disused BT telephone kiosk on the rural outskirts of Saffron Walden will potentially save lives having been repurposed to hold a defibrillator, thanks to a grant from Essex Heart Fund as well as from others.
The request for a defibrillator, which can be accessed by any member of the public with a code, came from the Audley End Community Project as their nearest available one was “two miles away in either direction”.
Essex Heart Fund (EHF) is managed through the independent charitable trust, Essex Community Foundation (ECF), and was set up by two local cardiologists to provide better support for Essex patients and to fund lifesaving research.
Deb Manchip, who co-ordinated the installation of the defibrillator, said: “It was important that we found the funding needed to install a defibrillator in the village as the nearest one was two miles away in either direction, and it’s the same distance to the nearest doctor.
“It brings a lot of comfort for people locally to know that if someone has a cardiac arrest in the village, we now have the equipment that could save their life.”
She added, “We are hosting regular sessions to ensure that local people are trained in how to use the equipment and feel confident in doing so”.
Dr Gerald Clesham, cardiologist and co-founder of EHF, said: “If a defibrillator is used on someone suffering a sudden cardiac arrest within the first minute, the survival rate can be as high as 90%.
“It is vital that smaller, rural communities like Audley End have access to this life-saving equipment and know how to use it correctly, should tragedy strike.
“We are pleased to have funded this defibrillator and have a number of other local projects underway to help people with heart conditions in the community, and through research, which is all thanks to local people who donate to the Essex Heart Fund.”
For more information about EHF and to donate, visit essexheartfund.org.uk.
If you are in need of grant, please contact the ECF grants team on 01245 356018.
Giving with a warm heart
23rd August 2022
Atul Manek’s extraordinary life journey has taken him from being an immigrant at 10-years-old to achieving a highly successful 30-year career in financial services.
Now, having retired aged 60, he is embarking on a new phase in his life, helping people to have better lives, using what he has learned and what he has earned through experience and dedicated work.
Establishing a family fund with the independent charitable trust, Essex Community Foundation (ECF) and joining the organisation’s board as a new trustee are the two elements which will enable Atul and his family to have a positive and enduring impact, both in the county of Essex and internationally.
“I have been very lucky to have had a successful and financially rewarding career,” said Atul, who lives in Shenfield.
“We came here to the UK from Uganda in 1972 months before president Idi Amin expelled Asians from the country. We arrived with nothing, when I was 10 years old. Luckily, I had a sister already studying here and she helped us to settle down. We needed to work for everything we had and I feel fortunate to have been able to build up my career.
“Knowing that I had enough money to live comfortably I wanted to give to good causes, but didn’t know the best way of doing that.
“I had given to some causes on an ad-hoc basis, but wanted something that would endure, where you could see the results of the support you are giving. I didn’t want to set up my own charity and have the burden of all the necessary administration and governance that involves.
“It was my financial adviser Dan Haylett who introduced me to Essex Community Foundation. Setting up a family fund with them has been ideal, as they take on the running of it and do it so well. I can help charities meet their objectives, in a hands-on way too, and my family will be involved in deciding which to support.
“I have been very struck by a question Dan poses to people who want to give. He asks them, ‘Wouldn’t you prefer to give your money away with a warm heart rather than a cold hand?’ In other words, he recommends giving while you are able to, in your lifetime.
“I think working with the non-profit sector is going to be very interesting. After setting up the Manek Foundation with ECF I was so inspired by their work I put myself forward as a trustee and was delighted to be asked to join the Board. I have a lot of executive experience and I believe my skills can transfer very well to the charity sector.
“I am looking forward to spreading the word about ECF and discovering more about Essex, having lived in London until 2005 and, until I retired recently, spending so much time in London for work.”
Atul and his wife Carole, a former IT professional in the City, along with daughters Krishni, Georgie and Grace will be working with ECF to give grants to organisations in Essex dealing with children’s causes, education, minority communities, refugees and asylum seekers, environmental issues and domestic abuse. The Fund will also make designated donations to chosen charities working internationally.
Carole helped establish and now runs the Women and Girls section for Hutton Cricket club where both Georgie and Grace play for the Women’s team having been founding members 10 years ago.
Krishni is currently based in New Zealand running her own web design business.
Georgie is at Leeds University studying Digital Media and is about to embark on a year at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore.
Grace is waiting for her A-Level results and is hoping to go to Liverpool University to study Criminology.
Travel and following cricket, a great passion in the family, will also be on the agenda for Atul and Carole.
Having come such a long way since arriving on these shores as a 10-year-old, Atul is all set to embark on his new endeavour with ECF.
If giving during your lifetime is of interest to you, why not give us a call. Click here to find out more or call Perry Norton, Head of Development, on 01245 355947 or e-mail perry@essexcf.org.uk