Coronavirus grant helps kick off new football team for grieving dads A NEW football team founded to help dads struggling to cope with the death of a child is getting ready for its first league campaign thanks to a coronavirus fund grant. Sands United FC Salisbury has been awarded £5,220 from Wiltshire Community Foundation’s Coronavirus Response and Recovery Fund to cover the costs of hiring a training pitch for a year. The club, by now boasting 33 players and three non-playing members, began training together at Bulford Camp in December, although they were parted again until restrictions on sport were lifted in March.
A DAY resource centre for adults with learning difficulties is set to launch a new outreach programme to support members at home and in the workplace thanks to a grant. The Open Door Centre in Swindon has been awarded almost £11,800 to cover the costs of an outreach worker from Wiltshire Community Foundation’s Coronavirus Response and Recovery Fund. The fund has distributed more than £1.5 million through more than 300 grants. A £100,000 donation to the fund from the Oakfield housing development in Swindon, sponsored by Nationwide, was used for the Open Door Centre grant. The centre, which meets at St Barnabas Church Hall in Gorse Hill, is eagerly waiting to see if all restrictions are lifted next month so it can welcome back every member five days a week.
Wiltshire Portage home visitors working with children A CHARITY that provides vital support to families of children with complex disabilities and special educational needs has been boosted by a coronavirus fund grant. Wiltshire Portage has been awarded almost £9,000 from Wiltshire Community Foundation’s Coronavirus Response and Recovery Fund to cover the costs of a home visitor to do early assessments. The fund has distributed more than £1.1 million through more than 260 grants. The 30-year-old charity works with 100 children aged up to school age all over the county with conditions including Cerebral Palsy, Downs Syndrome, Autistic Spectrum Disorder including a Learning Disability, Global Development Delay and Prader-Willi Syndrome.
Wiltshire Portage home visitors working with children A CHARITY that provides vital support to families of children with complex disabilities and special educational needs has been boosted by a coronavirus fund grant. Wiltshire Portage has been awarded almost £9,000 from Wiltshire Community Foundation’s Coronavirus Response and Recovery Fund to cover the costs of a home visitor to do early assessments. The fund has distributed more than £1.1 million through more than 260 grants. The 30-year-old charity works with 100 children aged up to school age all over the county with conditions including Cerebral Palsy, Downs Syndrome, Autistic Spectrum Disorder including a Learning Disability, Global Development Delay and Prader-Willi Syndrome.
KFR Operations Manager Dan Thompson at the extended warehouse in Devizes A CORONAVIRUS fund grant has helped a furniture recycling charity stay in operation after its revenue plummeted during the lockdown. KFR in Devizes was awarded £9,500 from Wiltshire Community Foundation’s Coronavirus Response and Recovery Fund to help with running costs. The fund has distributed more than £1.1 million through more than 260 grants. The group, on the Hopton Industrial Estate, collects and refurbishes more than 150 tonnes of unwanted furniture from all over the county each year and then sells it at low cost. In the last year it has also given more than 150 pieces of furniture to victims of domestic abuse, people in extreme poverty and rough sleepers who have been given a home.