Patient and carer at Greenwich Bexley Community HospiceCare

Greenwich & Bexley Community Hospice

April 12, 2017By

Two donations fund specialist medical equipment and increase comfort for patients

The Axis Foundation has been delighted to make two donations to help Greenwich & Bexley Community Hospice, an important community resource providing end-of-life care with compassion.

2017: Pressure Care Mattresses

In 2017, Greenwich & Bexley Community Hospice sought funding to buy pressure care mattresses for their 17-bed in-patient unit. The unit cares for around 400 patients per year. We donated £4,000 which enabled the hospice to purchase two specialist mattresses. These dramatically improved the comfort of those experiencing pain and discomfort due to their illness.

“The mattresses really help those in our wards to be comfortable in their beds, with a special system allowing the patient to make the mattress as hard or soft as they want. When we get donations specifically for specialist medical equipment it means that we can improve the comfort and experience for patients. It gives the staff peace of mind because they know that they have the best equipment to help the people that they care for.

“I’d like to say thank you for what you’ve done to support us. The charitable donations that we receive are really important for us as they help us continue to deliver our care” – Kate Heaps, Chief Executive

“We are so fortunate to be gifted pressure relieving mattresses for our ward. The patients say that they really help to ease their discomfort.”” – Anne, Hospice Healthcare Assistant 

2013: Syringe Drivers

In 2013, the Foundation donated £6,000 to purchase six Syringe Drivers, specialist medical equipment administering medicine. These are essential for pain management and symptom control.  A Syringe Driver is a small battery-powered pump carried by the patient. It releases medicine slowly, safely and effectively under the skin. It can be used, for example, when a patient is unable to take tablets.

More About Greenwich & Bexley Community Hospice

Greenwich & Bexley Community Hospice provides compassionate end-of-life care for around 2,500 people (per annum). The patients have illnesses such as cancer, heart failure, respiratory disease and neurological conditions. They live mainly in the London Boroughs of Greenwich and Bexley.

The Hospice is vital community resource – a lifeline for so many people and their families in truly difficult times. Their 24-hour care programme offers pain and symptom management as well as psychological care, respite, rehabilitation and end-of-life care.

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Child sitting in a mobility chair that has been donated to him.Disability

Vinnie James

March 15, 2017By

Mobility and independence for toddler with Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA)

Two-year-old Vinnie James was diagnosed with type 1 Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) at eight weeks old. SMA is a genetic disease, causing deterioration in nerve cells connecting the brain and spinal cord to the muscles. Type 1 is the most severe.

Vinnie’s family had been campaigning to raise money for a Permobil Koala Power chair to provide him with some mobility and independence. As his mother Kelly told us: “He currently has to stay where we put him. He’s a toddler. He should be running around causing mayhem but he’s not able to.”

The Axis Foundation initially agreed to donate £1,500 to cover the cost of the deposit for the chair. However – touched and impressed by further successful fundraising efforts by the family – the Foundation donated the final £6,000 needed to buy the chair. The family was also supported by chairman of local charity Heart of Darts Ian Waller.

“Without the help of the Axis Foundation and the donation they’ve made to the chair, we are unsure whether we would have got it. Moving forward, the chair will grow with Vinnie and ensure his mobility and independence – you have changed all of our lives” – Kelly, Vinny’s mother

The story continues…

Axis Operative Dan Ward (who was working near to Vinnie’s home on a routine job) noticed how Kelly and the family struggled to manoeuvre Vinnie’s previous chair through the front door of their property. So, he volunteered to fit and install a special door which was provided by supply chain partner Travis Perkins.

“The team at Axis saw what a struggle it was on a day to basis to get Vinnie in and out of our property. They came and fitted a specialist door that opens outwards making our life so much easier. This act of kindness is greatly appreciated by our family” – Kelly, Vinny’s mother

And, in 2020, the Axis Foundation donated a further £4,400 to fund a year’s physiotherapy with a Neuromuscular Physiotherapist for Vinnie.

“The money from The Axis foundation has ensured that Vinnie has access to the best possible physiotherapy. It means that we can continue working hard on making our little boy stronger and he can keep smashing SMA. Thank you” – Luke and Kelly James

 

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Two people playing Table Tennis at Pimlico Foundation youth projectDonations

Pimlico Foundation

March 12, 2017By

Youth project activities reduce anti-social behaviour

The Pimlico Foundation runs after school clubs, one-on-one mentoring, detached youth work, sports and creative activities, all of which are designed to prevent anti-social behaviour and encourage community spirit.

The Axis Foundation donated £700 to the youth project to help them purchase equipment including board games and a table tennis set. This donation means that there is a wider range of activities available at the weekly youth club. These sessions provide the young people who attend with a safe and relaxed space where they can interact with each other and engage with informal learning which serves to enhance their social and personal development.

“We’d like to thank the Axis Foundation for their gift of a donation. It has enabled us to purchase a table tennis set and board games and these are perfect ways to encourage the young people who visit us to interact with each other. The donation has added to our youth work and we appreciate the support as it’s something that the children are really benefiting from” – Mark Liburd, Senior Youth Worker

More About The Pimlico Foundation

The Pimlico Foundation works with young people to create a hub which provides physical, emotional and spiritual support, helping them to reach their full potential. The charity holds a weekly ‘hot chocolate outreach’ which reaches around 100 people. Attendees receive free hot chocolate and get the chance to speak to the youth workers from the charity about local events and help to shape the community.

The youth project operates under the youth movement Outbreak, which aims to create a cohesive community and help young people from disadvantaged backgrounds living in Pimlico

 

 

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Co-ordinator of Camberwell After School Project receiving cheque.Donations

Camberwell After School Project

February 1, 2017By

Children can socialise in safe after-school club

Camberwell After School club  enables children to socialise with each other in a constructive and enriching environment and we are happy that our support will be used to bring smiles to local children’s faces. Our donation of £1,000 bought gifts, toys and resources for children within the Camberwell community to enjoy.

“The donation has come as a blessing and it’s a great Christmas present for the children and we’re very grateful” – Carmen Lindsay MBE, Chief Executive Officer

“This after school club is vital for parents as it gives them peace of mind and practical support in terms of caring for their children whilst juggling their career or studies. They don’t receive much support though, so I’m really happy that the Foundation is helping them” –  Leah Kimani, parent

“We liked the cause and recognise the importance of knowing that your children are cared for whilst balancing working and family life. Services such as the Camberwell After School Project are a valuable asset to our community and it is important that we do everything that we can to support them ” – Foundation Trustee, Sandie Ryan

 

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Mary Stevens Hospice for palliative care.Care

Mary Stevens Hospice

January 11, 2017By

Specialist chairs enhance palliative care

The Mary Stevens Hospice delivers high quality palliative care, symptom control and therapy to people living with life limiting illnesses in the Stourbridge area. Last year the hospice provided 66,624 hours of direct care for patients on the In-Patient unit with around 18 patients attending the Day Therapies Clinic per day.

Palliative care often be a painful experience with patients experiencing, anxiety, breathlessness, discomfort and mobility issues as a result of their illness. Each of these issues has a direct and dramatic impact on the self-esteem and emotional wellbeing of a patient and it is therefore important that they are assisted in their daily life.

To help provide some added comfort and independence the hospice used our £4,000 donation to purchase 8 riser-recliner chairs. The chairs will benefit the patients as simple activities such as sitting and standing can be extremely challenging and painful for them. The chairs allow the patients to adjust the position of their seat without the need for assistance, whilst alleviating the pressure and stress on joints and muscles.

The chairs will also reduce the demand and physical strain on the nursing staff by providing the patients with ability to readjust their position themselves.

“Funding like this enables to continue giving the care that we do. The chairs will be a great help to our patients at the hospice as they will give them comfort and relieve pain. What you’ve enabled us to do is enhance the level of care that we’re able to provide” Alex Winstanley from Mary Stevens Hospice

 

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A child plays in the sensory soft room at Tower Hamlets Opportunity Group.Donations

Tower Hamlets Opportunity Group

December 12, 2016By

Safe sensory soft room for playgroup children

The Tower Hamlets Opportunity Group is a playgroup which provides a safe environment for all children (under 5) living in the borough supporting them on their journey into school.

51% of the children who attend the playgroup have a disability or additional needs, so it’s important that parents feel confident their children are involved in a safe, fully inclusive, pre-school, educational environment. In addition, Tower Hamlets Opportunity Group, a registered charity, aims to reduce isolation by helping people become part of the community.

In 2016 we made a donation of  £9,097. With this grant the Group created a sensory soft room including soft cushioning, steps, a slide, a mirror a dome, a projector and a twinkle hut for the children. Here the Tower Hamlets children – particularly those with disabilities – can learn and develop as they engage with their peers in a safe with a safe, stimulating and enriching environment.

“The sensory soft room was a simple design but it ticks all the boxes for under 5s development. It gives our little ones the scope to be confident and supports their imagination and physical development. Thank you for providing us with such a useful resource. Our children have really benefited from using the sensory room. It is a bright, soft and atmospheric room that everyone loves to use” – Lorraine Dooley MBE, Project Co-ordinator

 “The children at the setting are making great use of the sensory soft room that the Axis Foundation awarded us funding for. It has been such a great resource. The play practitioners and children are delighted”- Alan Dooley, Capacity Building Officer

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Elderly Woman at daycare centre being supported by unpaid carerCare

Carers Choices

November 12, 2016By

Minibus gives support to volunteer carers

The Axis Foundation has donated £7,500 to Carers Choices to assist them in buying a minibus. The charity, which operates in Essex, provides support for volunteer carers in the local community. They will use the minibus to transport carers and those that are cared for to their daycare centres and facilitate their respite services. This enables the carers to attend appointments, do some shopping, meet up with friends and have some ‘me time’ which can do wonders for a carer’s wellbeing. The Axis Foundation’s support also means the charity will be able to take a group of their clients out for the day, allowing the carers some respite.

 “The very generous funding from the Axis Foundation has enabled us to achieve the imminent delivery of a new minibus to be used by volunteer carers and the ‘cared for’ in the community. The ability to transport larger numbers of our clients, of whom many are in a wheelchair, is key to the provision of a more varied schedule of activities for those most needing the stimulation from the activities or the carers needing respite. Having access to this minibus will open up a whole new world for some of our clients who often suffer in isolation and lonelines” – Angela Allum, Silver Birch Centre Manager

More About Carers Choices

Carers Choices have three daycare centres; two of which provide activity-led stimulation, fun and movement for those living with Dementia. This has a double effect in that it provides a full day of respite for the carer as well as improving the mental and physical wellbeing of the person living with Dementia. The third daycare centre offers specialist care for adults with disabilities ranging from learning difficulties to physical conditions such as muscular dystrophy, quadriplegia, spina bifida and cerebral palsy. Carers Choices also send trained Support Workers into the homes of unpaid carers to assist them in their caring role.

 

 

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Child having a horse riding lesson at Vauxhall City farm.Community

Vauxhall City Farm

November 6, 2016By

Horse riding therapy at urban city farm helps disabled and disadvantaged children

Vauxhall City Farm started out in 1977 with local people working voluntarily to transform derelict land into an oasis of country life in the heart of London. Their Horse Riding Therapy Centre has been helping the Vauxhall community since opening in 2002.

The Axis Foundation has been supporting Vauxhall City Farm for many years. We have donated a total of £25,000  to the charity through five separate donations since our first donation in 2006. In addition, Axis people actively volunteered at the farm as it was close to our then Head Quarters.

 “Vauxhall City Farm Riding Therapy Centre has had a very successful year since receipt of payment of the grant from the Axis Foundation. We aim to continue to provide the current number of lessons to disabled and disadvantaged children and sustain the much-valued work for the benefit of local young people. We cannot thank you enough” –  Riding Centre Manager, Linda Hinds 

More About Vauxhall City Farm

Vauxhall City Farm’s horse riding project targets disabled and disadvantaged children in inner-city areas who would not normally have the opportunity to horse ride. In one year the centre provided 1,283 riding lessons to young people and 1,878 riding for the disabled lessons. Their feedback has shown that the horse riding therapy project offers a substantial amount of beneficial factors including increased confidence, relationship building and achieving individual goals, Horse riding and can also act as a form of physiotherapy.

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Braille at Clearvision for visually impaired childrenDonations

ClearVision Project

October 20, 2016By

Support for visually impaired adults and children

Can you imagine what it would feel like if the world of books was closed to you because you were visually impaired? Books educate and inspire and bring people together. Whether it’s at bedtime, in the classroom or at a book club, reading plays an important part in our lives and encourages sharing – pages, opinions and ideas. Indeed, as Roald Dahl said: “If you are going to get anywhere in life you have to read a lot of books.”

The ClearVision Project is a charity that helps those with visual impairment They encourage the love of reading, increase the availability of books in accessible formats and promote the use of braille, Moon and tactile illustrations. Their specially-created books put print, braille and Moon (an easier version of braille) together on the page with pictures so that people with a visual impairment and sighted people can read together. Reaching all ages across the UK, their work is impressive and far-reaching.

The Axis Foundation’s grant of £4,000 to the ClearVision Project funded 100 dual print and Braille newly-fluent books including popular children’s classics The Enormous Crocodile by Roald Dahl, Lizzie Zipmouth by Jacqueline Wilson, The Big Red Balloon by the charity’s patron, former children’s Laureate Anne Fine and The Hodgeheg by Dick King-Smith.

“We were delighted to receive your donation and would like to thank the Axis Foundation very much. With your help we can continue to meet the needs of our borrowers and bring them the joys of reading aloud and sharing books and stories.

“The books in contracted braille funded by the Axis Foundation are going strong and being very much enjoyed. The use they’re getting just goes to show how very much needed they are, and what a gap the funding has helped to fill.The results of our works are proven, opening the world of books up to those with a visual impairment, stimulating, educating and helping them progress and develop.

“Thank you very much for your help: the support of generous organisations like yourself is vital to our survival and ability to best meet the needs of our users.” Alexandra Britton, Director

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Specialist equipment that improves mobility for people living with multiple sclerosisDisability

Samson Centre for MS

August 11, 2016By

Mobility for people living with multiple sclerosis

The Samson Centre for MS provides free practical and emotional support for those in their teens and upwards who are living with multiple sclerosis in Surrey. Each year, they deliver approximately 3,500 physiotherapy sessions, 4,000 exercise classes, 2,500 gym sessions and 2,500 oxygen therapy treatments to MS sufferers.

The Axis Foundation’s donation of £3,172 will enable the centre to purchase two Functional Electrical Stimulation (FES) units and fund ancillary equipment over a three-year period. FES is a treatment that uses the application of small electrical charges to improve mobility. These FES units are a vital part of treatment for those with MS and our donation is projected to help over 300 people over the course of three years.

 “This donation is very much appreciated and both now and in the coming three years will make a difference to the lives of many people who are living with multiple sclerosis. Thank you all once again for your most kind and generous gift!” – Denice Logan Rose, Samson Centre

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