As a small group..we are creating a garden/space for all to enjoy.

A way of giving back to our community

A year ago we took ownership of a desolate,drab and weed-filled area..a year later we have transformed it into an oasis of calm..so important for mental health. We have a spot full of insect life..all our plants are bee/butterfly/pollinator friendly so important as this will be our village legacy for the next generation of up and coming gardeners.

The environmental benefits are exponential.

The village now has a focal point,a meeting place,somewhere to chill.

Our young people have a safe place to access.

Thanks to last years PB award we have a Wee Library..and a large planter filled with pollinator-friendly plants..both built by  Clyde Coast and Cumbrae Men's Shed

Our next wee project is the area at the entrance to the CC..we've already sited a planter full of polinator-friendly plants.

Seating in this area affords views to the hills and also all the play areas too..ideal for parents to watch their kids whilst also allowing them freedom to play.

We would like to purchase two sturdy benches..for the enjoyment of the village of Skelmorlie.

The benches in mind cost £75 pounds each.

They are made locally by a woodcrafter in Dalry.

Total cost would be £150

As part of our discovery award we have to complete 180hours for each unit which include doing hobbies and interests, volunteering, discovering so for us to be able to do this we would love to be awarded some money to help us with the costs we will incur such as day trips to historic venues of interest i.e. entry costs and travel and refreshments. Costs invloved on this may vary depending on the venue however an amount of  £300 would go a long way to help us be able to achieve our bronze award, we will be hosting events for the community such as coffee mornings etc so we will have an initial outlay for this.

We would like to also go together as a group to the Pavillion theatre in Glasgow to see a panto in December and to go for a Christmas lunch. The panto is called 'the beauty and the beastie and the cost for each person in £29 and we would love to go to the butterfly and pig on bath street before the panto and the cost for this on a Wednesday is £30pp so the overall cost would be for 10 people would be £590.00 and £10pp for a return train so £100 for this. so total is now £690.00.

Costings for trips/events £300

Costings for Christmas outing £690

Totalling £990.00

Largs Events’ objective is to bring events to the town that will bring pleasure for the residents and their families, whilst also increasing footfall to a popular “seaside town” which following the pandemic and consequential “Cost of Living” crisis, has seen a changing and declining landscape of choice and facilities. Increasing awareness of the available choices is key to creating a friendly and enjoyable experience to residents and visitors alike. We have managed to increase our events by use of a local partnership to facilitate markets with specific “topics” and these have proved popular. One of our foundation Events is the annual “Yuletide Night” which has always been popular, and we would like to carry this on. Last year the night cost Largs Events £3,422.00 as we continued our long-term objective of “Social Inclusiveness” and everything “Free”, and indeed all our events are wherever possible free, and across all genders and ages. As a committee we decided to refrain from approaching the troubled businesses last year because of the financial situation and will try to do that until a more appropriate time. This year we have been advised by NAC that the erection\dismantling of the Lights will need to be paid for and we are actively pursuing funding for this in order to ensure Yuletide actually happens. We have already obtained funding to buy new lights as the existing one are failing and beyond their best and hope to have this in place for this year.

Our Yuletide night is a night for all the family and we would like to ensure there is something there for all family members and here is where we are asking for help. We usually try to have an area for live entertainment ranging from choirs to some local entertainers, this we have in the past been unable to make best use of due to lack of funds and would like to ask for a sum of £1000 to hire the stage area, to accommodate the local singers, but to make better use of, we can get hire some more “established” musicians to come to Largs and people can enjoy them, again foc. Any spare funds could also be used to add extra entertainment to the event, but without current costings we cannot say at this stage.

Our normal Fundraising activities will continue with the hope of building on the last couple of years successful events, whilst maintaining our desire to make Largs a town we can all be very proud of.

This proposal will provide a fund to create professionally designed event boards, which will be displayed in the Largs Community Council Garden, adjacent to the A78. These will be in A1 size, and provide details in large font of:

• Event
• Date 
• Location
• Website 

It is clear that social media and even print media has limitations to reach, not least because we find that the older demographic do not engage social media, and the Largs and Millport News cannot provide endless free promotion. Many people do not find out about events on Social media until AFTER the event. 

The Largs Community Council successfully bid for grant funding for Tourist Information Notices boards which are now in place at the Seafront Car Park. We continue to receive feedback from the community that they 'didn't know that was on', whether for Yuletide, Community Cinema or other events and this proposal seeks to address a gap in providing information to those in the area. 

It is intended that this fund is used on a 'per event' basis, to allow non-profit groups the opportunity to promote their event to a large audience, without being burden with the cost. LCC are minded to engage with groups such as The Boys Brigade, Parent Councils, Mens Shed, Largs SWRI, Largs Community Development Trust, Dementia Friendly Largs, Food Larder, Access to Food, Largs Naz (Community events) and others to help them promote their events, increase footfall and drive success for their groups. 

LCC believe this proposal will:

Support Community Spirit - whilst larger events may have budget to publicity, smaller, voluntary organisations have limited finds, and we believe this proposal will help promote local, community based events, and bring the community together, whether through fairs, cinema screenings, workshops or speaking events. Participation in local events creates community cohesion and helps reduce Social Isolation and promotes feelings of physical & mental health wellbeing 

Health and Wellbeing - Our overall aim is to promote local events, and in doing so, we believe that we can help improve the Health And Wellbeing of the community. We know through our Community Cinema events how much people enjoy and the sense of community it bring about. Largs has a vibrant community sector and the more people engaged, the better for everyone. 

Cost of LIving - LCC Access to Food supports Community based Food Events and learning to cook projects and fundraising events ie "tea dances". This provides a sustainable way for individuals and families to prepare healthy but low cost food during the cost of living crisis. Whilst attendance has been increasing, the more people that are aware of events, the more who can benefit. Hard to reach families may not be aware of the events and this is a way they can find out without any stigma, quite the opposite. 

Green Projects -  As referenced above, amongst the groups we intend to engaged to support events are Largs Green Futures and future events to promote growing own produce. The LCC Anti Litter Campaign : plans further Seafront "litter Pick" events which can be promoted, along with other active groups in the area. 

Cost Breakdown:

Budgeted promotion of up to 9 events within 12 month period (if we can 

• A1 (594x841mm) sized print onto 5mm Foamex board £44.50 plus VAT.
• Design per event board expected 1 hour design £45+VAT
• 9 event boards £108inc VAT = £972

(Quotation provided by Largs Print Company. If 4 event boards are ordered at a time, the cost will reduce by £10 per units, which would go towards additional boards)

It should be noted that boards will be designed to be reuseable - where an event is recurring annually (for example, school fairs, Dementia Walk, Yuletide etc), the DATE section can be overlaid with this is it anticipated that the number of events that will be promoted will be at least three fold if not more. LCC will stored all boards to future reuse. 

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.

Our proposed project will support the more vulnerable people in the community during the winter months, those  at risk of increased social isolation, loneliness and depression.  

Largs has a higher percentage of elderly and a higher percentage of people less mobile.   Giving them that life line in winter to connect with people encourages them out of the house to be part of daily life in the community.  The social interaction promotes a sense of belonging and safety for those more vulnerable in the winter months.

This will also showcase local establishments who support poor mobility by easy access, encouraging others to spread the word of local residents involved in community life.  We believe that poor mobility should not mean poor involvement.

We propose to meet fortnightly during 6 months of winter.  12  events for an estimated 10 residents  at each.  £8 towards each lunch is £80 x 12 = £960. 

Health and Wellbeing

These 6 events will allow people to be physically active in travelling by bicycle ( or walking) from Routenburn Golf course or the Meigle avoiding the coastal A78 road.

This route on the Ayrshire coastal trail provides magnificient views over the River Clyde to improve oneself both physically and mentally.

Building Community Spirit

On Thursday 8th May we are part of the UK wide Beacon lighting ceremony to commemorate the 80th anniversary of Victory in Europe (VE day) which will be our third beacon event having participated in both Queen Elizabeth 11 Jubilee in 2022 and D day in 2024 this will be open to all in our community.

Cost of Living

All our events will be free of charge, and we will provide a unisex toilet facility and hot and cold drinks with a snack.

Green Projects

We believe that these 6 events will have a positive impact on our community as we are offering the use of our museum site with superb environmental views over the Wemyss Bay to Rothesay Ferry route as an active travel destination for cycling, wheeling and walking.