As in previous years, Hungerford Town Council has for 2018 made a number of awards to local charities and community groups. These were made in two rounds: £21,250 in July and £2,000 in November.

Please see below a list of the organisations which have benefitted from this round of funding and a brief summary of what the grant will be used for.

Awards ceremony

There was a ceremony at the Croft Field Hall on Saturday 28 July which was attended by representatives of the Town Council and of most of the organisations concerned in the first round of funding. The comments in italics below the summaries were taken from the acceptance speeches or conversations with the recipients at the event.

“This is one of my favourite municipal duties,” said the Mayor of Hungerford, Helen Simpson. “We’re thrilled that through various cost savings are new outsourcing arrangements we’ve been able to make an additional £5,000 of grants available to local organisations this year.”

Deputy Mayor Keith Knight reminded everyone that the Hungerford Library will from now on be available for a wider range of activities and events. “As you know, the Town Council in conjunction with a charitable trust is now running the library building. We welcome hearing from any group, whether it’s received grants from us this year or not, which wishes to use the building for for its activities.”

For more information on Hungerford Town Council’s grants and the use of the Library, please contact the Town Clerk Claire Barnes on [email protected].

For more information

If you want to find out more information about these organisations, links have been provided in each case. All would welcome some combination of new members, volunteers, further funding and attendance at any events.

Penny Post is happy to promote information about these or any other not-for-profit, community and charitable organisations at no cost. Please contact [email protected].

The recipients

The organisations with green headings received grants from the second round of funding in November 2018. Those with pink headings received grants from the initial round in July 2018.

BBC Children in Need Rickshaw Challenge £100

To help the BBC’s UK corporate charity provide grants to projects in the UK which focus on disadvantaged children and young people. .

• For more information, click here.

Chilton Foliat Community Association £250

To help with the costs of building a new clubhouse in Chilton Foliat  which will host a breakfast and after school club for school-age children and provide  facilities to enhance education and the social welfare of the inhabitants of the village and the surrounding areas.

• For more information, click here.

Hungerford Blind Group £300

To help with the cost of a coach to Weston-Super-Mare, which has previously proved a popular day-trip destination.

• For more information, click here.

“The grants from HTC are vital as they enable to continue to run two or three trips each year.” Lesley Blackwell.

Hungerford Chamber of Commerce £1,000

To contribute towards the Hungerford Christmas Extravaganza which in 2018 takes place on 14 December.

• For more information, click here.

Hungerford Rotary Club £100

To help with the running costs for the annual Santa Fun Run – this is the third year the Club has organised this event.

• For more information, click here.

John O’Gaunt School PSA – library resources £100

To help with the cost of joining Hampshire School Library Service for three years which will widen the choice of books available to students. The school library at present has a very limited budget with which to buy books or other library resources.

• For more information, click here.

John O’Gaunt School PSA – music resources £100

To help with the cost of establishing three new music groups and to increase both the facilities in the Music Department and the range of music courses which the school is able to offer.

• For more information, click here.

Newbury Weekly News Christmas Parcel Fund £150

To help with the cost of the contents of this popular seasonal treat for local elderly residents.

• For more information, click here.

Arts for Hungerford £1,000

To help with running costs for the 2017/2018 season which aims to build on the successes of last year with a Literary Festival with 10 authors and 2 events for children and an adult and junior writing competition.
• For more information, click here.

“Without this grant we wouldn’t be able to make this happen.” Tony Drewar-Trump.

CHAIN £1,000

To help cover the cost of running both vehicles (bus and wheelchair vehicle) and the running costs of the office which is open every weekday between 9am and 11am and manned by volunteers. An additional expense this year is the purchase of a crash tested wheelchair to meet the latest guidelines for wheelchairs in vehicles.
• For more information, click here.

“We’re really grateful for this grant. And, by the way, we’re always in need of volunteers in various capacities.” Janette Kersey.

Citizens Advice West Berkshire £1,500

To operate an outreach service for residents of Hungerford in the Hungerford Library. Two sessions will be offered on the first and third Wednesday of every month to clients wanting to access Citizens Advice in Hungerford. The clients that value this service are those who find it difficult to access services in Newbury.
• For more information, click here.

“This will be vital to maintain the Hungerford outreach service which in 2017 helped around 90 people.” Keith Knight (on behalf of CAWB).

Brighter Futures Radiotherapy Appeal, Great Western Hospital £1,000

To bring Radiotherapy Services much closer to home for cancer patients diagnosed at the GWH in Swindon. Currently, patients have to take a round trip of 70 miles or more to Oxford and face up to 40 daily visits to receive their radiotherapy treatment. A new Radiotherapy Centre is being built closer to home for cancer patients at the GWH and Brighter Futures will help fund the equipment.
• For more information, click here.

“Many thanks for this generous donation. This will help us reach our target. hopefully by the end of the year.” Jane Leighton.

HADCAF £1,000

To help with running costs for this year’s festival. Typically numbering around 50 events, the programme encompasses a wide range of arts and leisure-related attractions, including music of all kinds, theatre (professional, amateur and children’s), literature, film, exhibitions, workshops, talks and guided walks.
• For more information, click here.

HAHA £250

To help towards the purchase of a new petrol lawn mower to replace their existing mower. The benefits will be improved reliability, mulching capability, adjustable speed control and easier manoeuvring around obstacles.
• For more information, click here.

“This grant is very useful to provide some necessary capital funding.” Geoff Greenland.

Home-Start West Berkshire £100

To help provide a taxi service to enable invited families to attend sessions focussing on positive role modelling and play with young children under the age of five. Many of these children would have no social interaction with their peers without attending these sessions.
• For more information, click here.

Hungerford Bowling Club £400

To help towards the cost of celebrating the centenary of the club. Events include hosting a number of prestigious matches against opposition such as Bowls England and the Royal County of Berkshire Bowling Association and the purchase of commemorative items for visiting teams.
• For more information, click here.

“We’re really appreciative of this support in our centenary year.” Jennifer Bartter.

Hungerford & Camburn Educational Foundation £1,000
This charity is the only local charity giving financial help to students following further education and the grant will help local students towards the cost of further education.
• For more information, click here.

“This funding will enable this valuable support service to be continued.” Keith Knight (on behalf of HCSG).

Hungerford Cancer Support Group £250

This group meet monthly at a local hotel to provide support for people living with or affected by cancer. The grant will help towards the running costs of these meetings.
• For more information, click here.

Hungerford Cricket Club £500

To help towards the club’s ongoing junior coaching and equipment/net hire costs for the 2018 season. This is to allow the junior section to attend both winter and summer nets using qualified coaches with the correct equipment to meet the ECB’s safety standards.
• For more information, click here.

The Shoal of Friends, Hungerford Nursery School £500

To help with the Shoal’s “Wheels to the Woods” project. Evey week throughout the year, Hungerford Nursery takes children to Boxford where they experience outdoor learning. The group is seeking funding to hire a suitable replacement for their existing vehicle for the next 12 months. This will enable them to continue to provide this extremely valuable learning experience for three- to five-year-olds and to extend the facility to other needy children and families in the local area.
• For more information, click here.

“Our funding has been severely cut recently so this grant will enable us to continue to offer the same range of activities.” Daphne Angell.

Hungerford Rugby Football Club £500

To help towards the cost of providing high quality LED lighting for the pathways around the building plus the entrance and parts of the car park closest to the pavilion. The improvements will make the facility safer and more welcoming for evening usage which can be as many as six nights a week through the winter months.
• For more information. click here.

Hungerford Town Band £1,000

To help towards improving the band and keeping it running through the leadership of their Musical Director, improving the music by purchasing new pieces and keeping their library updated, and competing in the annual National Brass Band regional contest.
• For more information, click here.

“Without this award we’d be struggling. We really grateful to be regarded as an important part of the community.” Tim Crouter.

Hungerford Town Football Club £2,500

To help towards the conversion of a rundown room at the football ground into a commercial shop for the younger fan base. Its main point of use would be to arrange events on match days for local schools and away day travel etc.
• For more information, click here.

Hungerford Twinning Association £500

To help towards entertaining the guests from France who are visiting in August. Various events are organised with social and educational activities around sites of local interest and further afield to give the visitors opportunities to experience British heritage.
• For information, click here.

“This grant helps us to continue to offer hospitality to our French visitors. Many thanks.” Chris Piper.

Hungerford Youth & Community Centre £4,500

To help towards keeping the centre open and giving them the opportunity to develop and re-enforce last year’s achievements while striving towards new successes. The grant will cover the running costs including staff wages, service charges, insurance and website and marketing support.
• For more information, click here.

“The Centre is absolutely delighted with the grant it received from Hungerford Town Council and we really appreciate their continued support. This money is essential as it ensures we can keep the doors open for our youth and community. We have gone from strength to strength in recent years and now have an impressive eight groups a week using our facilities. As we speak, we have new flooring and a new kitchen being fitted. The Centre is a fantastic community resource.” Andrea Hodgkin.

Kennet & Avon Canal Trust, Hungerford Branch £500

To help towards the repair and upgrade of the Hungerford Wharf mooring site for the Rose of Hungerford which is an exceptionally successful pubic-trip boat launched in 1982. The parking area and the bank side of the boat’s mooring both need re-surfacing as they have become hazardous and dangerous, particularly for the increasing number of infirm, disabled and wheelchair-bound passengers.
• For more information, click here.

“This generous contribution of the Council will allow the Trust to improve access to the boat especially for our many passengers who are wheelchair-based. It will also contribute to us improving the general appearance of the wharf.” Mike Rodd.

Rosemary Appeal, West Berkshire Community Hospital £1,000

To help towards the Rosemary Appeal which is fund raising to build an advanced care centre at West Berkshire Community Hospital to develop increased cancer support facilities including day care, diagnosis and advanced treatment. The cancer centre will also provide intravenous chemotherapy, specialist consultations and counselling. In addition, a much needed renal dialysis unit will be built with 10 stations to provide care locally. It is also appealing for money to help provide a CT scanner at the Community Hospital.
• For more information, click here.

“Thank you for this generous grant. We’re now nearly there on our funding target.” Robert Tayton.

The Community of Hungerford Theatre Company £1,000

To help towards the running costs of the Company which operates in hired venues in Hungerford and the surrounding villages for rehearsals and production venues. Hire costs for rehearsals include setting up the venues for productions which, in the case of the Town Show, includes the provision of tiered seating.
• For more information, click here.

“This is a huge help in enabling us to keep all our shows on the road.” David Clayton.

The Tuesday Burchett Club £450

The club gives relief and support to those for whom growing older has coincided with varying degrees of disability. The grant will help towards the cost of accommodation for members of the club to go on a ‘Turkey & Tinsel’ holiday at the end of this year.
• For more information, click here.

“This generous grant will help go towards the cost of holidays and outings for our members.” Jill Head.

Wessex Rangers £300

To help towards the running costs of the club which include hire charges for the hall and equipment. It will also help towards the purchase of new uniforms for the cadets who have recently joined the club.
• For more information, click here.

“Many thanks for this grant which will help us continue to grow our membership and provide a wide range of activities for local young people.” David Oram.

Young People & Children First £500

This charity supports care leavers 16-25 (and homeless young people) in West Berkshire. They provide places to live and the guidance and support these disadvantaged young people need to bridge the critical gap between Foster Care (homelessness) and independent living. The grant will help to develop/deliver the charity’s Bridge to Independence support programme which will support up to seven residents in the next year.
• For more information, click here.

“This will help to pay for a number of things including special-needs intervention. We can’t thank the Council enough.” Patsy Stone.