Making a Difference

Kent Air Ambulance
£5,000

Funding towards the provision of a second helicopter based on the West Sussex/Surrey border, which, together with the current Kent-based helicopter, will provide optimum cover for people in West and East Sussex . The pioneering life-saving service flies with doctors on board.

"Major Awards"

St. Nicholas Church, Charlwood
£5,000

Conditional funding towards a single storey addition to the church to provide a meeting room, disabled WC and access and kitchenette.

Crawley Open House
£5,000

Crawley Open House is one of the few charities in the South East providing educational and employment opportunities for disadvantaged and socially excluded young people. The Trust's grant has been made towards the refurbishment of a greenhouse in the grounds to give more space for storage and instruction in craft and repair work as part of a job creation scheme.

“The service to, and achievements with, young disadvantaged and socially excluded men and women through the Open House project in Stephenson Way and the Southwell project on the Balcombe Road are hugely impressive and we give this our full support,” Christopher Lowe, Trust chairman.

(Click the thumbnail; to see the leaflet - .pdf 1.48mb)

1st Turners Hill and Crawley Down Scouts
£4,500

Grant made towards the re-building and re-fitting of a new scout hut.

“Our offer of a grant of £4,500 came at a critical time and just made the difference in being able to go ahead with rebuilding. It is certainly a smart and soundly built hut now,” Christopher Lowe, Trust chairman.

Copthorne Guide Units
£4,500

Funding towards the cost of building a new Guide HQ and community hall for Copthorne.

The Wey & Arun Canal Trust, Loxwood
£750

To purchase a chainsaw and train a volunteer to use it.

"Helping conservation and environmental projects"

Kent High Weald Project
£1,500

Funding towards the restoration of Dunners Pond at Barnetts Wood nature reserve, Southborough in Kent - see picture left.

Sussex Branch of Butterfly Conservation
£600

A grant for vegetation mapping on Chailey Common.

Friends of Goff Park, Crawley
£500

To purchase bat boxes, wildflower plug plants and to carry out an environmental study and count of birds, small mammals and flora.

Meath Green Junior School
£750

Construction of vegetable and science garden to help children get hands-on experience of growing fresh food.

Dormansland Primary School
£750

To help create an educational resource in the school grounds including fruit trees, vegetable garden and improved habitat for wildlife.

Crawley Cricket Club
£1,000

To help fund refurbishment and enlargement of existing cricket square and lay an artificial pitch.

Meridian Archery Club, East Grinstead & Lingfield
£500

Grant to enable club to buy safety netting so that they can host activities and fund raising events outside the established shooting area.

Horsham Olympic Football Club
£1,500

Grant to purchase new goalposts, nets and a full football kit.

“This award has made a massive difference to our club and the atmosphere within the club, since finding out this tremendous news, is just buzzing!,” Tim Wilkins, chairman

Lingfield Cricket Club
£2,000

To help purchase two state-of-the-art practice nets.

"Boosting special interest and sporting activities"

Crawley Cricket Club
£1,000

To help fund refurbishment and enlargement of existing cricket square and lay an artificial pitch.

Edenbridge Piranhas Swimming Club
£800

To hire swimming pool and ex-Olympic coach to instruct club swimmers in improved techniques.

Horsham District Crime & Disorder Reduction Partners
£1,000

To help fund Horsham's first anti-social driving restorative justice course aimed specifically at young drivers.

“The programme is going extremely well. Participants meet relatives of people who have been killed in road incidents and this has a significant impact,”Mike Roberts, trustee

Horsham Trinity Cricket Club
£1,500

“Our grant has been used towards the purchase of a new scarifier for the pitches and a portable scoreboard. The club is going from strength to strength and has been awarded ‘Chance to Shine' status – a government scheme to encourage cricket in local schools,” Mike Roberts, trustee

Plaistow & Kirdford Primary School Association
£1,000

“A useful contribution to the installation of a fitness trail and safety surfacing. The trail is heavily used and the school lays a lot of emphasis on outdoor activities,” Neil Matthewson, trustee

Reigate Priory Croquet Club
£250

To help club buy an automatic watering system. “The system is now in operation and we are confident that we will now have a usable lawn throughout our increasingly warm summers,” Mike Bottomley, watering project co-ordinator

Dormansland Short Mat Bowls Club
£500

To purchase new bowls mats.

Platinum Twirlers, Horley
£300

To kit out and equip a troop of majorettes/baton twirlers.

Crawley Hockey Club
£700

To provide additional practice facilities, replace worn out kit and encourage more involvement in playing and coaching.

Tunbridge Wells Girls Grammar School
£1,500

Towards the provision of a new facility for teaching drama for use by pupils and local community.

"Supporting the performing arts"

Bloomin' Arts
£750

To make a film adaptation of ‘Romeo and Juliet' and use it for youngsters with special needs in drama workshops in Reigate and Redhill.

Crawley Millennium Concert Band
£1,000

To buy more uniforms for growing band membership to maintain high visual standards.

Sussex Chorus
£500

To fund a performance in Worth Abbey Church of Mendelssohns's Elijah with professional orchestra, soloists and conductor.

Woodhouse Recorder Week
£1,000

Woodhouse is proving itself as one of major events in the recorder year, helping to generate enthusiasm, lifelong musical friendships and a true understanding of the instrument, both in the local Dorking community and for the many visitors from the UK and overseas,” Annabel Knight, course director.

(Click the thumbnail; to see the leaflet - .pdf 1.66mb)

Weald Music Society
£750

To help fund a performance of Brahms ‘German Requiem' at The Hawth in Crawley with professional orchestra and soloists.

Dorking Choral Society
£500

Towards professional fees for local choral concert

All Saints Church, Danehill with Chelwoodgate
£1,000

Grant made towards a music in the community project.

New Harmonie
£500

Part-funding a concert of words and music commemorating the sixty-first anniversary of the end of World War II at St. Michael's Church, Partridge Green.

Opera Brava
£1,500

Supporting a project to pioneer a new opera for children and to bring opera to primary schools in the Trust area.

“Opera Brava staged ‘The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe' to a number of schools throughout the year and were delighted with the response they had,” Mike Roberts, trustee

Acoustic Sussex
£1,500

To purchase new equipment such as sound and lighting.

“Your support is such a boost to small organisations like ours,” Martin Snodin for Acoustic Sussex.

The Lifetrain Trust, Dorking
£1,200

“We have purchased new dining tables and picnic benches which look fantastic and are getting an enormous amount of use by our young and disabled people,” James Marlow, trust and corporate fundraising officer

"Special help for the young, the disabled and the elderly "

The League of Friends of Crawley Hospital
£2,000

A grant to improve facilities on Comet Ward to give cancer patients access to local chemotherapy services. The League of Friends has bought three intravenous pumps.

Canine Partners
£1,000

This charity is one of five involving dogs as helpers for disabled people. Trust grant was used to support the establishment of a new intensive training centre for the dogs in East Sussex .

Winston's Wish West Sussex
£1,000

“Every hour two children under the age of 18 are bereaved of a parent in the UK . Winston's Wish could not support bereaved children, young people and their families without your help. Your donation will make a real difference to their lives,” Clare Scherer.

Southgate Primary School, Crawley
£500

“The staff and children at breakfast club really enjoyed getting together and choosing the toys they wanted to buy. The toys, including a new playstation, enable special, quality time being spent as a group prior to the start of the children's school day,” Mrs Annette Gate, special needs assistant

Horsham District Age Concern
£2,000

Towards the purchase of a new minibus to transport elderly people.

1st Burstow Scouts
£1,500

Funds to help the group buy new tents and equipment and to help repair existing building.

Baby Belles Parent & Toddler Group, Newdigate
£500

The grant contributed to the purchase of some small tables and chairs, and some big tables for the use of Baby Belles and other village hall groups.

Halsford Park Primary School , East Grinstead
£500

A grant towards the school's outside classroom project where the money has been spent on a Dakota Aeroplane weathervane, seeds, gardening equipment, a small greenhouse, wildlife boxes and plants.

Tonbridge MENCAP
£1,000

“The grant we received from you has been invaluable in progressing our travel buddy scheme for people with learning disabilities. It has contributed to the cost of a travel trainer and significantly, local authorities and other partnership bodies have consequently been more interested in what we can achieve,” Tonbridge MENCAP

The British Wireless for the Blind Fund
£1,000

Towards the provision of specially adapted radios for the registered blind.

“For many recipients, particularly the housebound and elderly, a radio set is their main link to the world outside,” Lesley West, fundraising administrator.

121 Youth Befriending
£500

“Without generous organisations such as yours, we would not be able to provide so much for all those young people who receive so little sometimes,” Rosemary Abrehart, project coordinator

Age Concern, Edenbridge
£850

Grant used to purchase a television and DVD/VCR player for Edenbridge Day Centre.

“The addition of this equipment will make a tremendous difference to the enjoyment and well-being of our elderly and disabled visitors,” David Townsend, income generation officer

Girlguiding UK , Blackland Farm, East Grinstead
£2,000

Grant towards furnishing the new group adventure house.

“How exciting it was for us to receive the grant which will help us to buy beds, dining room and kitchen equipment,” Miss Dorothy Slyfield, chairman of fundraising

West Sussex Deaf and Hard of Hearing Association
£1,000

Grant to help continue to provide vital support services to the hearing impaired community in West Sussex . “Trust funds have gone towards re-designing their website which is now getting hits from all over the country and its use by local people is increasing,” Mike Roberts, trustee

Rusper Playgroup
£1,000

Grant used to improve storage and install shelving, filing and cupboards.

“Apart from health and safety, this storage system enables the group to get all the gear out very easily each day. Money well spent,” Neil Matthewson, trustee.

Home-Start, Redhill, Reigate & Horley
£500

“We have already started our programme of sponsoring gym places for our overweight young Mums – and I am delighted to say we are getting some very promising results already!”

Three Bridges Infant School
£750

“The children all had a brilliant time on our residential trip to Butlins which the Trust so kindly awarded us a grant towards. For some this was their only holiday,” Mrs. J. Triggs, special support centre manager

Christian Lewis Trust, Children's Cancer Charity
£550

“Your contribution towards providing respite care breaks for children and their families from the Gatwick area is appreciated, and is a great help towards our target,” Julian Canning, deputy appeals manager

Warnham CE Primary School
£1,000

The grant helped the school to create an adventure playground.

CHASE Hospice Care for Children
£1,000

“Your generous support really does make a difference. We have a continuing flow of families being referred to us and are now supporting over 250 families with a life-limited child,” Becky Caswell, trust fundraising manager.

Kangaroos
£1,500

Grant to buy specialist computer equipment and software for Saturday clubs and playschemes in Mid Sussex for children with severe learning disabilities.

“The project is ongoing, but so far they have purchased ,Word-in-Pictures' software for the children who can manage the laptop keyboards. They will also purchase a ‘touch-screen' computer for the less able children to use,” Mike Roberts, trustee

Surrey Army Cadet Force, Horley
£1,000

“We are now in possession of a power point projector and projection screen and we hope to involve the cadets in producing teaching aids as well as giving them much wider access to the curriculum and testing syllabus. All this has been made possible with your grant,” Cadets and staff of Horley detachment.

Reigate & Redhill YMCA
£2,000

“The money will be used to enhance the children's play and sensory equipment providing a welcoming and accessible play area for all disabled and able bodied children,”Claire Kentish, development manager.

"Improving community facilities "

Blond McIndoe Centre, Queen Victoria Hospital , East Grinstead
£3,000

To fund refurbishment of the laboratory and to buy new equipment to continue the vital research into new treatments for burns and scolds.

St. Catherine's Hospice, Crawley
£1,000

“We are very grateful to Gatwick Airport Community Trust for part-funding the new Naya Rasta self-help programme specially designed for Asian people living with cancer,” Sara Eloquin, trusts and grants executive.

Mid Downs Hospital Radio
£1,500

“This grant has enabled us to move forward with replacing our outside broadcast unit helping us to continue providing a much-valued facility in supporting many events across the Mid Sussex community,” David Eggleston, marketing and public relations co-ordinator.

Oakleaf Enterprise, Surrey
£500

“It is good to know that Gatwick Airport Community Trust supports our cause supporting people with mental health needs back to work,” Mary Moller, fundraising support officer

Christ The Lord Anglican Church, Broadfield Crawley
£2,000

“Thank you for your amazing donation towards our free coffee drop-in that we are developing. Such a great gift is something that can help us put into effect the things we've had a vision for, but few funds,” Simon Taylor

SERV Sussex
£2,000

Serv Sussex delivers emergency overnight blood products to Sussex hospitals free of charge. Volunteers currently use their own motorbikes.

“The grant is a useful contribution towards the purchase of two dedicated motorcycles. SERV intends to expand the coverage of its service to help save lives and money for the NHS,” David Romaine.

The Olive Tree, Crawley Hospital
£650

“We were absolutely delighted to receive the grant that will make a substantial contribution to our Children's Support Group project. We are very grateful to the Trust for recognising the work that we do supporting those who are affected by cancer,” Marilyn Drury, manager

Southwater Local History Group
£500

“Thank you for awarding us a grant towards our Dendrochronology project, it is very much appreciated as we will now be able to date our first house,” Joan Francis.

St. Matthew's Church, Redhill
£2,000

Funding towards a new church extension providing toilets, a kitchenette and new meeting room.

“The days of exiting the Church and tramping up the hill in all weathers to find ‘physical relief' in the church hall are over!,” Angie Baker