Helping Disabled People

West Berkshire Mencap

For over 10 years the Foundation has been supporting West Berkshire Mencap with a number of grants. One of the most recent awards was a Sport Relief Grant of £1,240 to enable the children at their Newbury centre to undertake exercise. A specially adapted trike and a go-kart were funded and have proved very popular with the children.  Leila Ferguson, Chief Executive of West Berkshire Mencap said:

“The children love the trike so much that we have to devise a rota so everyone gets a go; it has given the children a great opportunity to get some physical exercise while having fun”

Riding for the Disabled

Each week, around 80 children with learning difficulties and/or physical disabilities come for riding lessons at Culmore House. For these children, these weekly sessions are a highlight that they never want to miss. The grant awarded by the Berkshire Community Foundation with money raised from the Newbury Racecourse Centenary Appeal has helped to pay for additional children with disabilities to receive lessons.

These lessons are so important to the physical therapy and personal development of these children, but you can also see the huge sense of enjoyment and achievement that they get too.

Brian Stewart Brown, Chairman of the Centenary Committee, Newbury Racecourse said:

“We are pleased to be associated with projects like these and have found our partnership with the Foundation to be a positive way to put something back into our local community."