17-seater minibus makes trips and treats accessible for wheelchair users
The Abbey School is a strong and vibrant special school with places for students who have learning difficulties and additional needs. The school also welcomes children with physical disabilities – and now has 12 wheelchair users.
The Axis Foundation donated £10,000 to help the charity (The Abbey School Farnham Trust) purchase a 17-seater wheelchair-accessible minibus so that Abbey School pupils can go swimming, to the gym, to local nature reserves and on summer school trips.
“On behalf of all the pupils and staff at The Abbey School thank you for the pledge of £10,000 towards our new minibus. We are really grateful to you all for deciding to help us with this very generous offer.
“A wheelchair-accessible bus will make activities available to all our pupils regardless of their disability and will help increase their independence as they grow older and leave Abbey for further education, supported employment or work experience” – David Jackson, Head Teacher
Make Them Smile supports children who have a wide range illnesses, some terminal, as well as those who are deaf, blind or underprivileged/ poverty-stricken.
The Axis Foundation donated £4,259 to help Make Them Smile purchase specialist equipment for Priory School, an SEN school for boys and girls with severe learning difficulties and autism.
“Thank you for informing me that the Axis Foundation has awarded Make Them Smile a significant grant for five rocking chairs, sensory equipment, gardening tools, and 10 IPads for Priory School in Upper Norwood. The school was absolutely delighted to hear this.
“Having personally visited Priory and several other SEN schools we’ve assisted, I know firsthand how they teach, and the impact these items will have on the school and its children.
“Once again a great big thank you to all at The Axis Foundation from Priory School, their teachers, 139 pupils, and all at Make Them Smile” – Robert Adams, Make Them Smile’s Grant Officer
The Foundation’s donation purchased:
5 Zuma BraceRock chairs (which help children to stay alert and pay attention)
Sensory equipment (to help children with their visual, auditory, and tactile processing, as well as fine and gross motor skills)
Gardening implements (so more pupils can enjoy the school’s outside gardening area)
Ipads which be used by the school’s speech and language therapists.
“We are delighted, especially about having the Ipads now, as we desperately need them. It will make a huge difference for the children here. Would you also forward our deepest gratitude to the Axis Foundation for this wonderful gesture?” – Ms Wendt, Occupational Therapist, the Priory School
Specialist equipment helps SEN kids re-connect with nature
The Garden Classroom (TGC) is a multi-award winning charity dedicated to reconnecting people with nature.
The Axis Foundation donated £2,008 to enable the Islington-based charity to purchase equipment for Hobbs Hill, their site for day trips and multi-night camping. Hobbs Hill (in the High Weald Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty) is designed to offer urban children a unique opportunity to immerse themselves in nature.
“Your donation is going to make a huge difference to our facilities on camp, especially for those children with Special Educational Needs. Your support will help us provide inclusive and accessible access to enriching, life-changing experiences for nature-deprived children, with impact extending well beyond their enjoyment of the camp itself.
“Our aim is always to create a deep connection with nature that can resonate throughout the lives of those taking part: and we couldn’t do this without your help – thank you!” – Millie Darling, Director of Countryside Programmes
The Axis Foundation’s donation will benefit over 200 children and their teachers who visit the campsite each year. We enabled the charity to purchase SEN resources for an autistic safe space on the campsite and a 6-person hammock, both of which will help reduce sensory overload and provide a calm, relaxing environment.
The Foundation also provided funds for top-up tools (essential for hands-on activities like bushcraft and den building) and a tarpaulin to safely cover the fire circle and provide shade for eating and cooking.
The Axis Foundation donated £1,000 to purchase a sandpit and an alphabetical and numerical frieze: this interactive and tactile equipment will help children with sensory issues and those on the autistic spectrum or with a motor disorder.
“Oh wow, that is amazing news! It is an amazing sum and will make such a difference to our children and the service we can provide. Thank you so much. We – and all the children who will benefit from using the sandpit and frieze – are deeply grateful to the Axis Foundation” – Larry Simpson, Manager
More about Petts Wood Playgroup for Children with Special Needs
Petts Wood Playgroup for Children with Special Needs provides care and education for children with clinical, emotional, developmental, social and additional needs aged from birth to five years. The special needs also include physical disabilities, developmental delay, behavioural and social problems that can cause difficulties for children and parents alike.
Attendance at the Playgroup is free. Their mini-bus picks up and drops off children to and from their homes in most local (Bromley, Kent) areas each morning. In addition to contributions and donations, support comes from Bromley Department of Education which provides services from an Educational Psychologist and Teachers from the Sensory Impairment Service.
Providing work experience for children with cognitive and physical disabilities
Through Camp Mohawk, The Woodland Centre Trust offers secure, supportive and stimulating woodland space to over 1,000 children and young people with a wide range of cognitive and physical disabilities every year.
The Trustees of the Axis Foundation awarded a grant of a grant of £5,000 to The Woodland Centre Trust towards a small cafe/ tuck shop for their ” Working Together” work experience project at Camp Mohawk.
“On behalf of the Trustees and management team of Camp Mohawk I’d like to offer our sincere thanks to the Axis Foundation for your support for children and young people with special needs… The addition of a cafe is going to provide fantastic work experience opportunities for our young people and this fantastic new provision will be beneficial to all our families attending. Many of our children and their famiies have experienced extreme isolation and exclusion during the pandemic. They will benefit tremendously from the inclusive play, social interaction, learning opportunities and support that Camp Mohawk provides” – Charlotte Webb, Fundraising Manager
More about Working Together
For some young people with cognitive and physical disabilities, finding work experience that meets their needs is very difficult so Camp Mohawk creates structured opportunities within its familiar environment. For the first stage of this project they propose to provide customer service work experience by creating a small cafe/tuck shop on site to serve the needs of visitors. The Trustees of the Axis Foundation were delighted to support this project.
More about The Woodland Centre Trust (Camp Mohawk)
Based in Berkshire, The Woodland Centre Trust supports children, young people and families affected by a variety of diagnosed conditions including Autistic Spectrum Conditions (ASC), Downs Syndrome, sight and/or hearing impairments, cerebral palsy, brain injury, genetic disorders and various other life-limiting inherited, acquired or medical conditions. Whilst the majority of visitors come from Oxfordshire, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Hampshire and West London, the service is open to all who might benefit from the experience. Schemes include Family Support, Short Breaks, Shared Play and Open Sessions.
In addition, the centre provides:
facilities which stimulate co-ordination, communication, socialisation and imagination
educational and recreational projects that help equip young people with special needs for eventual independent living
support network for young carers whose siblings have special needs
support for whole families affected by special needs to reduces stress and isolation and improve quality of life
a superb venue for local voluntary disability support groups, special schools and care centres.
There really are no limits to what our own Axis People will do to help the Axis Foundation and Demelza!
Everyone who works at Axis cherishes the Foundation and Demelza. We’ve been up (and got down) to many activities, Fundraising and using our Volunteering Days to support both causes close to our hearts. Here are just a few examples!
Ahoy
Arts for All
Marathon Man
Arts for All
Morrisons Fundraising
Demelza’s garden
Trees for Demelza
Halloween fundraising
Abseiling down the ArcelorMittal Orbit
In Demelza’s warehouse
Croydon Football
Hope in Depression
Fundraising for Demelza and the Axis Foundation
Ben Ibrahim, Divisional Manager, ran the London Marathon. Ben raised £14,600
Our Oldbury Team organised a fiendish Treasure Hunt for Halloween. Their devilish enthusiasm raised £45
Kellie Turner, Head of Community Investment, and Oliver Refson, Head of Sustainability and Quality, abseiled down the ArcelorMittal Orbit in Stratford Olympic Park. Kellie and Ollie raised £1,500
With Croydon Council, our team in Croydon hosted an 11-a-side charity football match, raising £640
Volunteering to help our Foundation charities
Colin Norwood, Projects Supervisor, Joseph Hayes, Business Development Manager, and Kemeisha Brown, Resident Liaison Officer, all volunteered at Arts for All, a creative charity based in London which runs art therapy sessions for people with special needs.
Marketing crew Tim Aslett and Kurt Mussell volunteered at The AHOY Centre which helps disadvantaged children in Deptford learn life skills on the water.
HR Intern Grace D’Souza volunteered at Hope in Depression, supporting individuals managing depression and/or anxiety.
Volunteering to support Demelza
At the Warehouse: RLOs Sarah Cooper, Martine Hales, Adila Gredelj, Donna Tryhall Adila Gredelj, Elma Gredelj, Christina Castle and Ben Nitsch, Electrician, sorted donated items at Demelza’s warehouse in Maidstone, Kent for delivery to Demelza’s charity shops.
And In the Garden: Lorrae Mannering, Commercial Manager, Katie Hayes, Team Leader, Gary Weaver, Multi-trader, Bradley Emms, Groundworker, Michael Kitts, Multitrader Steve Hogben, Electrician Jake Remon, Apprentice Electrician, Emily Nisbett Commercial Analyst, Stuart Carlow, Plumber, Thomas Darling, Apprentice Plumber, Ryan Kelly, Plumber, Louie Attaway, Plumber, Anthony Veal, Supervisor, Geoffrey Collins, Multitrader, Michael Kitts, Plasterer, Stephanie Hendry, Administrator and Amelia Randall, Scheduler, all spruced up the gardens at Demelza’s Sittingbourne Hospice.
Two Sittingbourne operatives, Nigel Blackshaw and Dave Day, helped Demelza by collecting Christmas trees in Tunbridge Wells, Bromley, Medway and Swale. Demelza will use the trees for topping up bark pathways, mulching underneath trees and hedges and composting in the grounds of the Sittingbourne Hospice.
Main picture: Francesca Fordham, Rositsa Kormeva, Tanya Edwards, Sarah Cooper and Connor Ritson from Projects volunteered to raise funds at Morrisons in Thamesmead for Demelza.
Providing toys and accessible activities for children with additional needs and disabilities
Bristol-based charity Incredible Kids enables children and young people with additional needs and disabilities to make friends, have fun, and play, increasing their mental wellbeing, and improving their confidence and social skills. Parents set up the charity to support each other and help reduce the social isolation typically felt by 72% of families with a disabled child.*
The Axis Foundation donated £1,000 towards purchasing new ‘bright and engaging’ toys and an accessible activity table for approximately 500 children.
“The funding from the Axis Foundation has already transformed our sessions with a new wheelchair-accessible activity table and a whole host of beautiful new toys and activities for the children at Incredible Kids to enjoy. We are so grateful for the opportunity to add new toys for the families that visit us. Thank you Axis!” – Jennie Prewett, Trustee
More about Incredible Kids
Incredible Kids offers support for the whole family in order to reduce feelings of isolation and increase overall mental wellbeing of disabled children, their siblings, and their parents/carers.
In 2019, 600 families accessed Incredible Kids’ services. Numbers of individuals attending have more than doubled since COVID-19 (from 1000 individual members to 2200).Through their own data collection, in-person interviews, and online surveys Incredible Kids show that after attending their sessions:
83% of parents and carers made friends,
76% of disabled children made friends.
89% of families said they no longer feel isolated.
*The Hidden Isolation Report commissioned by Contact a Family states that “72% of families with a disabled child will experience mental ill health such as anxiety, depression or breakdown due to isolation.”
Our donation increases accessibility in community gardens
Beyond The Wall is a two-acre walled garden in Suffolk for people with additional needs ranging from physical or learning disabilities to mental health conditions or low self-esteem.
The Axis Foundation donated £5,000 to help Beyond the Wall to enable the charity to grow and develop their kitchen garden, providing accessible paths, raised beds and a communal sun shade area.
“The clients and staff at Beyond The Wall are absolutely thrilled to have received a grant from the Axis Foundation. The grant will help us achieve so much in the coming months, which will benefit all of our current clients as well as future proof the garden for future clients. Without this grant, we would not be able to achieve so many of our plans to make the garden more inclusive and accessible for all of our users” – Rozelle Bettesworth, Centre Manager
The raised beds will enable more clients to access the garden independently and with greater ease. The kitchen garden provides Beyond The Wall’s clients with the opportunity to grow fruit and vegetable to cook with, take home and share with families and friends and also sell at markets to generate further funds for the charity.
We help equip sensory room for children at new Interactive Science Centre
The Axis Foundation donated £3,900 to the Kinetic Science Foundation to help them purchase toys and equipment including a bubble machine for their “all senses” room. Here children with additional needs – and indeed all children – can enjoy a tranquil space and re-charge. A further donation of £4,900 in 2022 enabled them to purchase a Mirror Ball and Projector.
“We are exceptionally grateful for this donation which makes a difference to children of all ages and aids their well-being with a space to relax and be a calm oasis. This donation allows us to make our Senses Room accessible to all. The Senses Room is in our new Interactive Science Centre: the largest in East Anglia. Over 40,000 people per year will enjoy the new centre” – Debbie Ball CEO and Founder
About the Kinetic Science Foundation
The Kinetic Science Foundation was established in 2015 to inspire all young people to enjoy Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths. They do this by providing outreach projects, festivals and roadshows and exciting workshops like Bodily Functions, Pop-up Planetarium and Marquee Rain Forest. The Kinetic Science Foundation has delivered their programme to over 165,000 young people.
There’s more about the Kinetic Science Foundation here
Creating forest learning space for children with Special Educational Needs
The Friends of Collett School approached the Axis Foundation to help convert an overgrown, unused forest area to a forest school area for children with Special Educational Needs. And we were delighted to make a donation of £540 to create learning packs for the project.
“This is such wonderful news! On behalf of everybody at The Friends of Collett School, thank you very much for your donation and support – it is really, really appreciated” – Rhea Dickman , Fundraising Lead, The Friends of Collett School
More about the Forest Learning Space
The forest learning space for children with Special Educational Needs will include outside blackboards, a fit pit for cooking, sensory equipment, a mud kitchen and bug hotel, a trim trail, a living fedge and a den-making area.
All these fun and educational work stations will help Collett’s children with Special Educational Needs engage with nature in a safe and supportive space. The children will learn transferable gardening skills, develop communication and cognitive skills and improve their self esteem and confidence.
The Collett School for Special Educational Needs in Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire will also invite local community groups and special and mainstream schools to use the forest learning area.
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