The Clyde Coast & Cumbraes Mens Shed is becoming more and more integrated into the community everytime we open our doors, we are being asked to make or repair more and more varied items by the public, Local charitable causes & local businesses, which gives the membership a great sense of achievement and a feeling belonging to the community, which improves their mental health and wellbeing. 

We held evening sessions with the Scottish Womens Institute & the Largs Boys Brigade on seperate nights, which were greatly received and has lead to us organing evening session with both groups which will help to teach them new skills and hopefully develop into something that can use in the future.

The breakdown of costs for the funding is as follows.

1. For 2 Erbauer Impact Drivers £199.98
2. For 1 Erbauer Impact Wrench £69.99
3. For 2 Trade screw Packs £139.98
4. For 10M of 220mmx 20 Planed Pine £248.88 at current prices
5. For 50M of 150 x 19 Rough sawn Fence palanks £220.40 at current prices
6. For 20M of 47x50mm Rough sawn timber £101.00 at current prices

What The Trust is about

Largs Community Development Trust (Largs CDT) has secured premises in Boyd Street, Largs to use as a base for the organisation's work, to be called 'The Space'.  Part of that work will be working alongside other organisations, such as offering access to benefit advice services and a credit union. 

Largs CDT is a local organisation set up and run by local volunteers. We aim to work for the benefit of the community in Largs by addressing a range of economic, social, environmental and cultural issues.

The launch will have several aims:

This application is to help launch our activities and raise awareness of the new facility, and help us sign up the community of Largs as 'Friends', improve awareness and recognition of the Trust and the work we do.

We want the launch to:

• Create momentum and encourage people to join as Friends
• Help us create a register of volunteer's skills within in the community
• Capture the ideas and opinions of Largs people
• Commmunicate the Trust's aims and objectives using eg, leaflets, posters, banners, signboards, events
• "The Trust is for people like me" — speak to the community across all ages and experiences of life
• Gather feedback and create interest in current and future projects

We plan to have a number of days where we distribute leaflets and goodies promoting the Trust on and around Largs Main Street, and at The Space community hub. The objective is to encourage the people of Largs to engage with the Trust, see The Space as a place and the Trust as an organisation that supports them, their aspirations and the well-being of the community.

Proposed marketing materials we are seeking funding for: 

• 10x XL t-shirts, pinted front and back £210
• 2x 2.5m feather flags £240
• 300x window cling vinyls £150
• 1,000x A4 DL (99x210mm) Friends joining forms £145
• 1,000x A4 DL (99x210mm) flyers about Largs CDT and its aims/objectives £145
• Posters, social media boosting and targetting £100

We have obtained the help of professional designers to help us with communications, design and a website which will go live with the events. We also anticipate creating other communications eg, press releases, photoshoots, digital media to publicise the event.

Largs CDT is registered as a Scottish charity (SCIO SC053580)

I moved to Largs late 2022 and created Largs Music Club soon after in response to the interest I received since floating the idea on social media. 

LMC offers an informal setting for amateur musicians to meet on a regular basis and encourage and teach one another to improve their skill-level on their preferred musical instrument.

The club is growing in popularity since word is out that we existing members offer a friendly and relaxed environment for those keen to learn at their own pace without fear of judgement or impatience. As membership is growing, so does the variety of instruments being learned and taught. 

The club relies on individuals contributing their time and equipment to teach fellow members how to play their preferred instrument. With continued funding, I would aim to purchase more equipment to make that teaching more accessible - music stands, microphones, microphone stands, amplifiers, mixing desk and some basic entry level instruments to encourage those who do not own an instrument (but who wish to learn one), to join us. The funding would also contribute to the maintenance (and if necessary, repair) of the equipment purchased in our first year. These items are expensive and realistically will require additional funding from me and some other willing members to supplement any money issued following this application. However, I am confident that your contribution will assist LMC continue to grow in membership and reputation and continue playing music for the community.       

Our club assists develop confidence as well as musical literacy, with participants encouraged to play live for friends and family and now, for larger audiences in the community shows as per my vision. 

Feedback from participants so far evidence the mental health benefits of playing and learning in our community, a benefit I will highlight as I further promote our initiative in the community. 

Members talk about how the club combats loneliness and depression. I hope to continue making this club available for some time to come.

The reason I don’t include a specific breakdown of cost is because our costs are really unpredictable. The idea of the club is that anyone can turn up and learn to play any instrument. So last year we bought, among many other things, a mandolin, a banjo and a saxophone. The demand is driven by who walks through the door and what they want to learn.

We also spend money on instrument maintenance – new strings and replacement parts. Again, we respond to what our members need – replacing guitar strings once they break, for example.

We spent more than £1000 last year (all receipts available) and expect we’ll do the same again next year. That said, I expect you’ll have more applications this year, so we will be very delighted to receive any amount of award.

We at LMC are extremely grateful for your consideration.

We spend a significant amount of the nursery day in our outdoor garden and forest area.  We are focussed on giving our children the best experience at our nursery and so the skill sets the children develop outside and the opportunities for different ways to play here are a large part of their learning at WKEYC.  Being able to use our outdoor space so well, builds the children's confidence and resilience to playing outside in all weathers.  In order to provide this we always consider both the children and staff's well being and how best to cater for their comfort.  

Therefore we are asking for some smaller items that will make a big difference to their time in the garden.  We are hoping for mobile hand wash stations for warm handwashing outside which is key to children's health and wellbeing; tarpaulins for shelter and ground cover with a tougher tarpolin required as this needs to be robust enough in the stormier weather;  facilities for hot drinks for staff and children to allow them to cintinue for longer outside and feel happier doing so; hand and feet warmers for staff (children are catered for already) and portable seating for staff to take five minutes whilst out in the garden - the children have these facilities in their log chairs. 

Although small these items will have a direct impact on everyone's mental and physical health.  Staff will feel valued and appreciated in their workplace as we try our best to keep them warm and dry and everyone will benefit from being outdoors, learning in a different environment.  This is proven to aid in their overall health and promote other ways to learn.  In some cases, this will also provide an element of play they may not receive at home promoting equal opportunites for our children.

Below are the items we would love to be able to provide for our  children and staff. 

Insulated Mobile Hand wash station x 3 (£204) = £612

Tarpaulin (3m x 4m) for groundsheet = £11.99

Tarpaulin (waterproof and storm proof) for shelter = £75.36

Travel Chairs x 4 (£10) = £40

Hot drink dispenser x 3 (£24.99) = £74.97

Travel mugs for staff x 8 (£9.88) = £79.04

Warm insoles for wellies ( £5.98 for 2 pairs) = £23.92

Hand warmers (40 pk) = £26.49

Total £943.77

There is a document attached with the links to the products we are looking at. As these are live links prices may have varied (especially on Amazon) from when we have looked at these - we will endeavour to purchase as close to these prices as possible.