Children playing instruments at London Philharmonic Orchestra.Donations

London Philharmonic Orchestra

April 6, 2016By

London orchestra continues to display their talent and passion for singing through our donation to their Sound Journey programme for pupils with special educational needs.

The London Philharmonic Orchestra, founded in 1932, is one of five permanent symphony based orchestras in London.
Not only are they renowned for their passion for music, they also have a passion and drive to give back to their community, which is why the Axis Foundation is delighted to have donated £1,500 to their Sound Journeys programme.

Sound Journeys is a dedicated and tailored programme for children with special educational needs in South London. They work with different centres and schools in the area, previously working with Aurora House, a centre for primary aged children with autism in Lambeth, and with the Deaf Support Centre at Thomas Tallis School, a mainstream secondary school in the borough of Royal Greenwich.

Workshops are run throughout the programme in which they learned about different instruments, increased their musical awareness and developed communication and social skills. Teachers were able to access Continued Professional Development sessions which provided the skills and confidence needed to continue working with music for future classes.

“We were absolutely delighted to receive the donation from the Axis Foundation. The money has helped us to bring music into the lives of children with disabilities ranging from severe autism to profound deafness, and to give class teachers the skills and confidence to continue including music in their classrooms for years to come. The grant has made a lasting difference to the lives of both the children and their schools,” Clare Lovett, Education Director (Maternity Director). 

28 pupils, three class teachers and seven teaching assistants participated directly in the project, but more pupils will benefit from the new skills and confidence which the teachers and teaching assistants have developed.

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Owl in snowy tree at Suffolk Owl SanctuaryDonations

Suffolk Owl Sanctuary

April 5, 2016By

Braille boards for visually-impaired visitors increase accessibility of local community educational centre.

The Axis Foundation donated £1,000 to The Suffolk Owl Sanctuary. This donation funded 50 Braille boards for visually-impaired visitors to make the centre more accessible and sensory friendly.

The sanctuary needed the new Braille boards as they were receiving increasing number of visually-impaired visitors. The boards will sit next to the written information boards, catering for all those who come to the centre.

The Suffolk Owl Sanctuary is a registered charity and comprehensive facility for the care and rehabilitation of Owls.

Working within the local community, the sanctuary also supports physically and sensorily-disabled children and young adults. They work closely with schools in East Anglia where they often give free talks to pupils. This is a very rural area: there is no other facility that caters for disability play or education within a fifty-mile radius.

Thanking the Foundation, Marie Robinson who runs the sanctuary said:

“We are thrilled to bits that such a reputable company is supporting us in this new and very exciting venture which will not only benefit people in our local community but also on a much wider scale. Without the help from companies such as Axis none of this additional work could take place.”

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Carer at Heart of Kent Hospice looks after patientCare

Heart of Kent Hospice

February 29, 2016By

Specialist beds and chairs offer comfort and safety to those approaching end of life.

Heart of Kent Hospice cares for those who are reaching the end of life. It opened in 1991 after dedicated local people raised funds to build a hospice for residents of Maidstone, Tonbridge, Malling and surrounding village areas.

The Axis Foundation has made donations which have bought specialist beds and chairs to give comfort and support to the 800+ patients  who use the Hospice each year.

In 2016 the Foundation awarded a donation of £12,243 to buy specialist beds for the In-Patient Care unit here.

Vicki Morrey, Heart of Kent Hospice’s Chief Executive, told the Foundation: “Your wonderful contribution has made a real difference to the patients and their families who receive our care at the hospice.

“Each of our ten bedrooms now has a new Enterprise 8000 bed. Our patient Alan said: ‘It’s very comfortable… it’s great to be able to adjust the controls myself.’ The nursing staff have also responded very positively to the new beds because they have helped improved the care they can offer.

“The controls are easy to operate by both patients and staff and the transition between positions is comfortable.

“The beds will enable us to care for over 220 patients every year and we anticipate they will continue to meet the needs of our patients for at least five years.”

Earlier donation

In 2015 the Axis Foundation awarded £3,788 to Heart of Kent Hospice to buy new supporting chairs for their Garden Room. This is a calm and comfortable place where patients and visitors relax looking at the peaceful Hospice garden. However, it had not been updated for some years and the furniture was broken and worn.

“Heart of Kent Hospice is delighted to have been able to purchase new chairs in our Garden Room. Our patients can now benefit from the highest levels of comfort and safety with these beautifully designed chairs.

“Our Garden Room is a lovely quiet space away from the noise and bustle of the rest of the Hospice and is appreciated by all our visitors who use it for spiritual reflection, reading or just some quite time alone or with loved ones.

“We are deeply grateful to the Axis Foundation for making this possible and we offer you a huge thank you.” Sarah Pugh, Chief Executive of Heart of Kent Hospice.

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Man holding donation cheque for Singing groupCommunity

Advocacy in Greenwich

February 4, 2016By

Axis Foundation funds music therapy for adults with learning disabilities.

Advocacy in Greenwich is a support group for people with learning disabilities in the London Borough of Greenwich. Their Sing & Smile Group enables adults with learning disabilities to share their love of music with each other in a friendly and inclusive environment. During their weekly sessions, overseen by a support worker, members choose songs to perform together. Sometimes, people perform solos when they are feeling brave enough.

The Axis Foundation donated £900 to the Sing & Smile Group, helping to cover their running costs.

Sing & Smile was set up by Advocacy in Greenwich in 2014 in response to a nearby community music group shutting down. It is important to its members because it provides with them with a creative outlet, a way of making friends and it feeds their love of singing and performing.

“Thank you very much for the £900 you sent us for our singing group. We are very pleased you chose to give us some money and we are over the moon that the group can carry on. We really enjoy getting together each week and singing makes us feel happy.” Ian Harvey, member of Sing & Smile

Advocacy in Greenwich’s wider mission as a charity is to encourage people with learning disabilities to be heard and included within the community. As a result, they offer far more than just music therapy for adults with learning disabilities. They also provide youth workshops, Training & Consultancy, BME projects and support for parents with a learning disability.

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Women in elderly care smiling and holding ribbons at support groupCare

Bishop Creighton House

October 25, 2015By

Providing care service for the elderly and vulnerable

Bishop Creighton House helps disadvantaged, elderly and vulnerable people, those with learning difficulties and low-income families. Established over 110 years ago and based in Fulham, south west London, Bishop Creighton House provides essential care across West London.

The Axis Foundation’s grant of £2,450 went towards their Homeline project. This is a free telephone befriending service for elderly and isolated people. The service will contact medical and social services and arrange visits from a volunteer for a friendly chat or to help with practical tasks like filling out forms. Homeline ensures that older people are not forgotten and that they have a friendly voice to talk to when they need assistance.

“As a small charity, it really is fantastic to be helped by the Axis Foundation! This will go a long way to maintaining the volunteer-run telephone service. The grant will go directly to providing a daily or weekly Safe & Well check for people (with an average age of 82) who are lonely, isolated or have health issues” – Joy Houghton-Brown, Manager for Older People’s Services

“Our telephone befriending is a wonderful service providing over 1,350 friendship and support calls a week to 154 lonely, older people. Thank you again for your kind support of our project” – Joy Wilson, Manager

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Wide Horizons logoDonations

Wide Horizons

October 12, 2015By

Adventure-based learning activities for disadvantaged children

Wide Horizons delivers a range of adventure-based learning activities for all age groups of school children. These include day centre nature experiences for primary school children and adventurous activities for older children and young people. They call this their ‘Adventure Learning Partnership’ programme.

Wide Horizons used their £5,000 donation from the Axis Foundation to provide a programme of outdoor education and adventure to sixty children from economically disadvantaged areas.

Our donation will fund a week long programme of activities, designed specifically to link with the school curriculum and help with educational and personal development. The children from Marvel Lane and Brent Knoll schools in Lewisham are selected based on a means testing system to identify those most in need.

“Helping Wide Horizons deliver adventure-based activities to children whose families cannot afford  thems, supports our belief that every child should have the opportunity to experience adventure as part of their education and throughout their lives”  – Axis Foundation trustee, Tim Hayes 

The benefits to children attending the adventure-based learning programme are far reaching and include increased confidence and self-esteem, better communication skills, an understanding of how to work as part of a team and achieving personal goals. These benefits combine to improve the chances of success at school and future employment.

“The donation to the Adventure Learning Partnership Programme was matched to two local primary schools in Lewisham which proved to be very successful. Each school had an amazing time, infact everyone had a fantastic time” – Lynn Leadbeater, Fundraising Manager

“The week was a great success and the teachers and children were buzzing when they returned back to school” – Headteacher, Eddie Dove

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Children play dress up in Victorian clothes at the Ragged School in London.Donations

Ragged School Museum

February 16, 2015By

Boost for Victorian family learning programme

The whole family can enjoy “a day in the life of a Victorian” thanks to our support of the The Ragged School Museum‘s family learning programme.

Our donation of £3,000 will go towards free, drop-in Family Learning Holiday Activities in the school holidays.These activities are designed to engage the whole family, highlighting how learning together can be fun. It is estimated over 4,000 people will benefit from the Family Learning Programme over the year, here in what today remains a deprived area of London.

“Everyone at the Ragged School Museum feels proud and privileged to receive another donation from the Axis Foundation.  Your generosity is vital support for our lively family learning programme. We couldn’t be more grateful. Victorian philanthropy created the ragged school movement, today the Axis Foundation mirrors that generosity for new generations of children for which we are truly grateful” – Erica Davies,  Museum Director

More About The Ragged School Museum

The Ragged School Museum offers a unique experience, a living snapshot of Victorian childhood. Here, in a reconstructed Victorian classroom, pupils on school visits can directly experience how their destitute Victorian counterparts were taught. There is also a contemporaneous East End kitchen, so they can discover how hard domestic work was before electricity powered washing machines! The Museum is housed at  Dr Barnardo’s Copperfield Road Ragged School in Mile End which, from 1877, provided education, food and clothing to Victorian London’s destitute. It was the largest ragged school in London.

 

See our video celebrating our 10th birthday in 2019 – and find out how the Ragged School used our donation

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Boy stands on ball next to new sports equipment at Confidence through sportDonations

Confidence Through Sport

January 12, 2015By

New sports equipment for children in deprived area

Confidence Through Sport is a community organisation that runs sporting activities for 5-11 year olds. They are located in a park and a school club in North Thamesmead.

£2,500 from the Axis Foundation will fund new sports equipment for the sports-based community initiative, which operates in one of the most deprived areas in the country. We’re covering the cost of footballs, goals and some brand-new training apparatus.

The project remains affordable so that underprivileged children and those with additional needs or disabilities can also partake in healthy outdoor activities. They focus on football but other sports, such as badminton and basketball, are also encouraged.

There are currently 80 children registered and the club is overseen by five volunteers, including three official coaches with one being FA registered. The volunteer coaches strive to be a positive influence on the youngsters, who are often from disadvantaged backgrounds.

Confidence Through Sports seeks to build the self-esteem and motivation of children and young people, as this will assist them in other areas of their lives.

“Before we were running on limited resources but now we have new footballs, built some goals and bought different equipment used to test agility. All of this allows our members to gain valuable sport experience and can help us provide for more young people”  – Robert Parrara, Chairman 

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Elderly patient at North London hospice receives support from two carersCare

North London Hospice

September 11, 2014By

Specialist equipment increases comfort for terminally ill

The North London Hospice is a registered charity that has been caring for local people since 1984. They assist with the specialist needs of those with life-limiting illnesses; providing physical, emotional and spiritual care to patients and families, friends and carers. The hospice already looks after approximately 1,400 terminally-ill patients and their families each year.

Thanks to £4,800 from the Axis Foundation, patients at the North London Hospice will benefit from new specialist furniture designed to provide comfort through supportive postural and pressure care.

Our donation has purchased a pneumatic ‘HydroTilt’ recliner chair that will be available to hundreds of inpatients throughout the year. The specialist equipment protects vulnerable areas of the body from pressure damage and encourages healthy sitting positions, whilst Reflexion foam and Water-cell technology ensures comfort. These chairs will make sure that patients receive the finest standard of care possible.

“An important aspect of hospice care is the individual’s physical comfort. Proper seating plays a vital role in alleviating pain, but these seating requirements are often complex; trying to balance issues of comfort, pressure management, posture control and independence is not always easy” – Isla Stevenson, North London Hospice

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Four men from England Deaf Rugby Team show trophyDonations

England Deaf Rugby Team

August 11, 2014By

 Support for Deaf Rugby player

Paul Cooper, a member of the England Deaf Rugby team, Paul Cooper, received £500 from the Foundation which will go towards training equipment and transport costs to get to and from matches.

The Deaf Rugby team was set up for deaf and hard-of-hearing players who are often overlooked by mainstream clubs because of their disability. However, it often relies on donations for equipment, training facilities and transport to operate. The importance of the club goes beyond access to sport. The team were invited to take a tour of the Houses of Parliament and discuss deaf awareness with MPs.

Paul explained: “It’s not easy to communicate when you have partial hearing loss and making those in parliament aware of the challenges and issues that need to be addressed will hopefully help the wider deaf community.”

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