The Canny Crafters Group is a local sewing and craft group open to all, offering support in crochet, sewing and the art of repurposing old materials into new, creative projects. Based at the Redburn Centre, the group works in partnership with the friends f redburn community group and has been active for around a year. What began with just 4 members has grown to a ful group of 12 participants and two dedicated volunteers. Together htey have created a variety of handmade items, including Christmas wreaths, hand knitted goods and crochet crats and they plan to hot stalls at local events selling their handmade goods to help sustain the group and ensure its continued success.

The group fosters creativity and skill deelopment while offering a warm, commujnity focused atmosphere and for the members attending it has many benefits, including learning new skills, making new friends, and promoting mental well being. It provides a creative outlet, cost free access and a supportive environment where the members can recieve guidance on personal or group projects, enhancing a sense of belonging.

The group would like to apply for the cost of tickets to be able to attend 2 Creative Craft shows at the SECC to see differnt types of crafting and get ide4as for thier own group and also to buy resources such as wool and fbric for future projects.

Breakdown of Costs

Creative Craft Show Tickets March 2025 x 14 £168

Creative Craft Show Tickets Xmas 2025 x 14 £168

Resources such as wool, fabric, patterns etc £350

Total 686

Our goal is to continue providing community lunches and providing catering services, working in partnership with other local groups and  bringing all members of our local community together regularly with a focus on alleviating poverty, reducing social isolation and enhancing mental health and well-being. 

Our community group offers  free  lunches,or takes small donations, to all residents within Irvine, many of whom are affected by poverty, poor mental health, and social isolation and these lunches provide a vital lifeline, offering not only nourishment but also a sense of belonging and connection. These meals foster social interaction, breaking the cycle of isolation and helping improve their mental well-being.

In addition to the lunches, having a trained chef as a volunteer the group now offers an external catering service to partner organisations at cost which generates income, enhancing the sustainability of the group and allowing the group to continue supporting the community. Volunteers who help run the lunches and catering service will receive essential training in areas such as REHIS (food safety), hospitality, barista skills, first aid, and customer service. These skills not only equip volunteers to support the efforts but also enhance their employability and confidence, empowering them to make a meaningful difference in their community and benefiting them in other areas of their lives.

In order to achieve this the money provided would help with running costs for the lunches and provide external training for volunteers.

Breakdown:

Running Costs, including food and caretakers costs                         £500.00

Training and admin costs                                                                   £500.00

Total applied for                                                                                £1000.00

Our charity was set up to provide free transport to the community who were diagnosed with cancer and requires treatment in any hospital within Ayrshire, Glasgow and Edinburgh. Once the patient has had treatment we will continue to support them with transport for non cancer related treatment. We have around 40 volunteer staff within drivers and office staff. None of our staff are paid other than our drivers who are paid mileage expenses. For us to provide this sevice the charity must raise over £65000 per year. All our drivers are paid mileage at 50p per mile which is calculated at 45p per mile plus an additional 5p per mile for extra passengers.

The £1000 would breadown as 14 runs to Glasgow at 71 miles @ 50p per mile = £1000. This would allow us to take a maximum of 42 patients to appointments.

The £1000 to be used for local hospitals (Ayr, Crosshouse and Ayrshire Central) could breakdown as 33 runs to local hospitals @ 30 miles @ 50p per mile = £1000. This would allow us to take a maximum of 99 patients to appointments.

Christmas party for children age 0-10. 

Hire of Santa - £200

Selection boxes -  £300

Small gifts -  £300

*This is based on previous with approximately 60 in attendance. 

Interior design and decoration of display ares.

Design and fitting of information panel..

provision of spotlights, installation of audio facility and appropriate electrical works. 

Bourtreehill and Broomlands Community Association (BABCA) would like to get some new decorations for Santa's home at their annual Christmas Fayre the Grotto needs a makeover and this year they would like to make it a free grotto so every boy and girl who has been good gets a gift if they visit Santa at the Christmas Fayre. Santa loves to see all the children and this event is always popular at the Christmas Fayre.

Holding the Christmas Fayre yearly brings the community together the fayre attracts a lot of local craft people as well as it brings all the organisations who use the centre on a weekly basis like So Lovely, Veterans, Brownies, pipe band, Children's First etc an opportunity to fund raise for their individual groups it brings them all together to create a positive change in their local community. The Christmas Fayre also allows BABCA the opportunity to enlist new committee members and volunteers for the food larder (Farm Basket) whilst engaging with the general public.

BABCA would also like to organise a Valentine sixties and seventies night held in the Towerlands Community Centre with a live band to encourage people into Towerlands Community Centre to see what is happening in the centre. The Adults would have the option to come in fancy dress. A wee trip back in time with hits from musical artists from the sixties and seventies like the Beatles, Elvis, Buddy Holly, Diana Ross to name a few.

We also want to use this opportunity to see what community events the community want to see happen in the centre throughout the year. Holding a yearly social engagement helps us as a committee gauge what the community want to see happening in the centre when we organise events.

The criteria we hit are health and wellbeing that address social isolation, social wellbeing of people with learning disabilities, build confidence as people from the Community farm basket shop attend social events it brings people from an intergenerational groups together with social events such as the Christmas Fayre and social event.

We also hit building Community Spirit as the projects and both events will bring people from all walks of life together, old and young. BABCA are all volunteers on the committee who run the centre and look forward to holding events for the community. We would like the following if possible

Entertainment £400

Food pies  times 80 = £80

Hall Hire - £115.50

Santa's decorations £50

presents for Santa  -£300

Total funding    £945.50