News helps city groups win £1k in Comic Relief grants

Published on Friday 15 April 2011 18:26

FORTY-one cash-strapped community groups have each scooped up to £1000 after successfully applying for Comic Relief grants through the Evening News.

And today we can reveal the grassroots organisations set to share in the windfall run by Red Nose Day Community grants.

In February, the Evening News announced that it had teamed up with Red Nose Day organisers to help allocate grants to the city's most deserving causes.

This year's appeal placed particular emphasis on supporting community groups that make up the backbone of our society with Red Nose Day Community Cash grants of between 500 and 1000 up for grabs.

Evening News editor Tom Little was part of a panel who helped decide who should be awarded the community grants.

One of the applicants was Rona Hunter, chairperson of Abbeyhill After School Club, who bid for 797 to buy a laptop and digital camera for pupils at her homework group.

She said the new equipment would help children from low income families to learn about digital technology at the club, which has around 26 users and has been running for a year.

"If we were to receive the money we would be delighted," she said. "It would help us increase the capacity of the club to help the children with their learning.

"A lot of homework is digitally based but some of our kids don't have that equipment at home.

"We have about 26 kids that use this service and they have a chance to make themselves more competitively placed with kids from better-off areas of the city."

Another applicant to the fund was George Kay, chair of the Macular Disease Society (Edinburgh and South-east Scotland branch) who was seeking 1000 to help take his partially sighted and blind members on a day out. The group has been running for 23 years and has a membership of 180. "We have lots of people who are elderly, a lot of widows and widowers, he said.

"If we were to receive this money I would be over the moon and we would take a trip to a wool mill in Moffat."

Yvonne Moore, co-founder of Engross Theatre Group, applied for 994 funding to help bankroll effective educational plays for children with learning difficulties including autism.

She was inspired to launch the group from the reaction of disabled youngsters, including her son Douglas, to a live performance about The Second World War in 2006.

"We take plays to special schools but we have to pay for our actors and writers," she said. "It's very difficult for kids with learning difficulties to learn in a conventional way because they cannot listen well or retain information that easily. But what we found was that by having live theatre performed before their very eyes they become absolutely engrossed.

"Gaining around 1000 would probably allow us to do another two plays straight away or allow us to buy some new sound equipment because ours has stopped working.

"Every penny is a godsend so this would just be amazing."

Abbeyhill After School Club

All Nations Christian Fellowship

Altogether in the Park

Arts South Edinburgh

Calton Welfare Services Project

Causey Development Trust

Cavalry Park Sports Club

Children's Holiday Venture

Clermiston and Drumbrae Children's Gala

Clovenstone Community Centre

Community One Stop Shop

Craigmillar Literacy Trust

Cruse Bereavement Care South East Scotland

Dignity Alert and Research Forum Ltd

Edinburgh Dynamic Twirlers

Edinburgh Old Town development Trust

Engross Theatre Group

Fort Youth & Community Association

Friends of Forthview

Gilmerton Community Centre

Gorgie War Memorial Hall

Gracemount Ibex Gymnastics Club

Macular Disease Society (Edinburgh & SE Scotland)

Meadows Festival Association

Murrayburn Primary School Parent Council

Muslim Women's Association of Edinburgh

New Caledonian Woodlands

Rights Office

Redbraes Community Garden

North East Edinburgh Care Action Group-Older People's Forum

Slateford Green Residents Association

Sorted Project

South Edinburgh Cluster Youth Group

St Teresa's Arts and Craft Club

Stenhouse, Saughton Mains and Whitson Community Council

Valley Park Community Centre Management Association

Vision for Leith

West Craigie Local Food Project

Wheatfield backgreen Assosiation

Young At Heart

Young Mum's Education Trust