The continued support of Corsehill retirement club allows the elderly to access different opportunities outwith their local environment. One of which has been our very successful day trips to the theatre along with a meal. This can be the highlight of our participants year and we hope to continue to provide this service. The impact that these trips have on our group is wonderful and many members comment on how this gives them something to look forward and appreciate their freedom in going to different places. This has an overall positive impact on the individuals health and wellbeing. If we were successful in receiveing this funding it would enable us to provide this support and plan more trips out for our members. We hope this money can help reduce the cost of living and take away financial pressures that a trip may have on individuals. Receiving this grant would ensure that all our members were ablle to attend the trip regardless of affordablility. This in turns ensures that everyone has equal access to opportunities that we provide ensuring that our members have opportunities to socialise outwith our usual environment. This in turn improves the health and wellbeing of our members through making sure we have multiple different activities that can help stimulate their social circle.

Day trip to the theatre with a meal and transport

Theatre tickets - £450

Transport to Theatre - £450

Refreshments - £100

We are a group of retirees who enjoy yoga instruction, with a registered tutor, every Tuesday morning in Saltcoats Town Hall. We have 25 members, all over 60, most over 70 and several over 80 years of age. Our current hall cannot accommodate any more than 25 and this is a sufficient number for our tutor to oversee safely. We operate a waiting list and we are inclusive of all retirees. Our group has been going for almost 20 years. Yoga keeps us physically active and improves our strength,flexibility, stamina and balance, which is imperative as we age to keep us from falling. Yoga also helps us menally, by coping with stress, when we do our breathing exercises and relaxation at the end of each class.

Many of our members are now widowed or dealing with the illness of a partner and  have consequently lost much of their social life.  We have one member who is registered blind and several who are hearing impaired. This all leads to isolation and lonliness. Covid has had a massive effect on many of us but we set up a WhatsApp group to enable us to keep in touch via phone calls and messages and to offer support when we need a shoulder to lean on.  We like to have coffee meet ups and/or lunches which allows us the time to talk together and find out if anyone is going through a rough time and perhaps needs some support.  We also try to have a day trip and a Christmas Dinner each year.  This allows us to the have the time to just enjoy a day or an evening out together to have fun. As we all know the cost of living is increasing rapidly and we live in an area of deprivation, so to be able to fund some get togethers and outings means a great deal to those who are no longer able to work.

We are all finding that technology is moving too fast for us, but as a group, we are there to offer assistance, if possible, and try to figure things out between us.  We struggle sometimes with so many things having to be done online i.e. applying for funding, making bookings, accessing menus or information and even at times trying to make a GP  appintment or order prescriptions. It's getting more difficult to access hard copies of forms and menus etc. Even when shopping ' It's all online' we hear them say.  A laptop of our own would make things much easier .as phone screens are too small for to see and are difficult for those with arthritic fingers.  We could hopefully learn together, and from one another, how to use a laptop effectively and erase the need for paper copies to be printed thereby helping the environment too. 

We have included a video below.

Yoga lessons £550, Coffee/lunch £250, refurbished laptop £200 = £1000

At Crossing Together Toddlers we aim to provide a fun, warm, safe, welcoming and accessible space for babies and toddlers to come along with their grown-ups from Bourtreehill and the surrounding areas of Irvine.  In setting up the group we initially looked at accessing funding to purchase equipment and toys however a toddler group in Troon had recently folded and they gifted us items that meant we could launch the group immediately. The group is free of charge to families to access and weekly snacks and craft materials are provided through donations and fundraising.  It is important for us to maintain a no charge policy to maximise accessibility due to the cost of living crisis and our locality being significantly impacted with regards poverty.  Weekly snacks provided are balanced with items like fruit, toast and juice/water being provided for the children and a warm drink and biscuits for the grown-ups.  As well as the weekly sessions we want to provide the families with new experiences that can include their older children and partners which will extend the community spirit that is being built in and around the group already.  These new experiences include family fun days, parties, trips and days out locally and further afield. 

Many of the families who attend the group rarely travel outwith Irvine and it would be great to improve the health and wellbeing through a summer trip to a farm park, which would provide a new experience by seeing the animals we sing about and read about at our weekly song and story time.  A Christmas Party with entertainment, hospitality and a visit from Santa would also encourage positive mental health during the festive time that brings much stress with extra financial outgoing in winter.  A weekend family fun day using the local park space would enable us to include working parents and older children and through hospitality/food and fun activities create a positive aspect to a park area that carries much saddness in the community and encourage resislience and new owership of the local space. 

For Crossing Together to provide these experiences at no cost to the families in our locality we would be applying for the PB Locality Funding to help meet these costs as well as doing additional fundraising and seeking donations.

Examples of costings to provide such experiences are:-

Farm park admission (approx 80 people includes under 2s free) = £625

Childrens Party Entertainer = £125

Gifting from Santa (approx 40 gifts) = £120

Hospitality Party/Funday = £130

Additional costings for items like craft materials and additional hospitality would be sought through donations and fundraising.

Our karate club is based in Irvine is well established and open to all. We practice in the Redburn and Castlepark community centres on Mondays, Wednesday and Saturdays. We have c. 150 members that benefit from our classes and we support physical and mental health. Our members are in all age groups and many are from deprived areas and challenged by the cost of living. Many of our members attend competitions all over the UK and we try to keep our costs low and support people so that everyone can take part. For example we already subsidise karate suits, competition entry fees etc. We’d be grateful for any funding and money would go towards equipment and suit subsidies, subsidising entry costs and occasional travel to competitions.

Estimated breakdown would be:

-        Equipment (mats, punchbags, T-shirts, etc) - £400

-        Suit subsidies – 40 suits x £10 subsidy = £400

-        Entrance fees subsidies, we pay £1600 roughly in entrance fees  – £200 

To reinforce the annual school visits it is intended to produce a workbook for each pupil take away with them as a reminder of their visit.

In relation to the verse speaking “Champion of Champion” event funding is sought to provide trophies for those pupils nominated to represent their schools and performing their chosen poem.

It is intended that there will be three categories, Primaries 1-2, Primaries 3-4 and Primaries 5-7.

There are 11/12 Primary Schools in the Irvine Area, and it is hoped that all would participate.

Those nominated by their schools are also eligible to compete in the Ayrshire Association of Burns Clubs Schools’ Competition held later in the year.

We seek funding towards the printing costs of the workbooks (£500) and the purchase of 36 trophies at a cost of £20 each (£720) a total of £1220.

Following the reduction in Streetscene's budget, there are a number of maintenance issues that need to be addressed by the community.  This application will give us a budget to arrange these works in conjunction with other local groups.  A few months ago, the Dalry Community Development Hub organised responsibility for maintaining planters in Dalry with various local groups.  They received funding and were able to purchase plants, both annual and perennial, from Gateside nursery.  We would like to do something similar in Kilbirnie.  Whilst Dalry had only 9 planters to arrange, there are more areas in Kilbirnie needing work:

9x planters in car park beside Salvation Army

5x planters outside old folks houses in Main Street at the Cross

5x planters between BBQ Hut and Easties on Bridge Street

1x flowerbed at foot of the path outside Kilbirnie Library

1x flowerbed at the top of Bank Street / Glasgow Street

As well as these flowerbeds, other works needing done includes weeding along kerbs and property boundaries on pavement side; clearing vegetation from public paths, such as the Cat's Lane

HMS Dasher Memorial - Ardrossan

HMS Dasher was a Royal Navy aircraft carrier that blew up on 27 Mar 1943 and the parade weekend is always the closest weekend to the anniversary.  Even though it was 80 years ago, we still have family members of the crew attending each year.  On Sat 29 Mar, there will be a service at sea on board the CalMac ferry, which will stop over the wrecksite. There will be wreathes laid at the memorial at Brodick ticket office.  On Sun 30 Mar, there will be a parade at the sunken garden across the road from St Peters in Chains church, where family members and community groups will have the chance to lay wreathes, flowers and other tributes

2024 costs 

Outgoings                           £   919.20

Biodegradable Flowers   £   100.00

Entertainment                   £   200.00

Buffet                                   £   240.00

Fri Catering                         £     20.00

Wreath centrepieces       £      9.20

St Peter's                              £   100.00

IoC Pipe Band                    £   250.00

Remembrance Day

Stevenston

Static Remembrance Day service in afternoon of Sun 10 Nov at the memorial outside the council building on New Street supported by Auchenharvie Academy, Stevenston youth organisations, including Stevenston Boys' Brigade and Scouts.

Saltcoats

Parade from Bradshaw Street, through Dockhead Street and Hamilton Street to the war memorial on the roundabout outside Cafe Melbourne in the morning of Sun 10 Nov.  The parade will be led by the Isle of Cumbrae Pipe Band and will be supported by various organisations, such as Ardrossan Air Cadets, Ardrossan Sea Cadets, church groups and other community organisations.  The service will include the laying of approx 50 wreathes by various groups.  

Costs

Pipe band £1000

Note: costs which exceed this funding request will be paid out of branch funds.  We receive no central funding or council funding specific to these events (other than this application)

Our Sunshine on Beith (Summer 2025) will have a weather theme, and we will be presenting Ola Gjeilo's inspirational Sunrise Mass, for choir and strings.  We would like this grant to fund the purchase of choral sheet music, and contribute to the cost of professional musicians.

Sunrise Mass cost:  £400

Sunshine on Leith (Proclaimers) choral music arrangement:  £100

Professional Soloists £250 each = £500

Dalry Community Sports Club was founded in 2007 as a constituted group and has been a registered charity since 2014. Initially, our key aims were to advance public participation in sport in Dalry and the surrounding area by promoting and providing opportunities for a wide range of sporting and leisure activities in an accessible manner to all groups of people, and to improve the fitness and health of the persons for whom the activities are intended. Through these initiatives we have worked to generate an environment to live in which strengthens our community, recreating the levels of inclusion enjoyed by previous generations. Over recent years we have built on this and looked for additional opportunities to help address other key issues within our community, including, social isolation, food deprivation, mental health & wellbeing and cost of living issues.  We are looking to extent some of the benefits we have realised from these initiatives by launching free regular Community Cinema events with complimentary refreshments. We ran a successful trial night in the Community Centre last Christmas and have had a number of requests to repeat this. To help us realise this, we would work in partnership with Dalry Community Centre Association to deliver these free events.

Community Cinema events

Breakdown of costs:

Purchase of Equipment - £300

We would seek to purchase a DVD Player (approx. £100) and a Large Projector Screen (£200). DCSC already have a projector and speakers, Dalry Community Centre would purchase the annual film licence at a cost of around £400.

Community Centre Hall Let - £14.70 per hour x 3 hours = £44.10 (1 x 90min film plus setup/pack away time – 3 hours required for event)

Cost of living – NIL cost entry– tickets only

Food deprivation – look to provide free soft drinks/tea/coffee/biscuits ahead of the film (cost £50 per event)

Attendance – maximum 100

Total costs per event = £94.10

1 event per month = 12 x £94.10 = £1,129.20 plus equipment cost of £300.

Total cost of project - £1,429.20

The North Stevenston Community Association is dedicated to supporting the local community in North Stevenston. However, financial limitations are hindering our ability to provide free events to the community, especially to vulnerable groups such as children and those over 50 who are affected by financial challenges, food crises, and isolation.

Community Challenges: North Stevenson is a financially challenged area, making it difficult for many families to afford necessities, especially food and activities. This has led to an increased reliance on anti-poverty support and often isolation. Christmas is a special time of year and we would like to help people make positive memories of 2024.

Community Events: To address these challenges, we aim to provide festive events for the community. An all-the-trimmings Christmas lunch &  Free family event including a visit from Santa, a gift, and entertainment. 

Budget Requirements: To successfully organise these events, we require funding support totaling £1000, allocated as follows: - £450 for the Christmas Lunch 3 course 50+ for food and entertainment  - £550 for the Free  kids’ and family Santa event

Activity Costs: Over 50s Christmas lunch -We estimate a guest list of approximately 60 individuals for Christmas lunch and plan to utilise the funds towards 3-course Christmas meals, table settings, crackers, and entertainment. For the kids and family Santa event, we expect approximately 100 children to attend, and the budget will cover expenses for a photo booth, decorations, a disco and DJ, and small gifts or selection boxes.

Impact and Community Resilience: The funding to enable these events will provide temporary joy and enhance community interaction and resilience. Our hall venue allows for positive interactions and offers a supportive environment to strengthen social networks and general well-being within the community.  We would like to increase our services to support people locally and will use the opportunity to highlight our anti-poverty and activity-based program to provide support when needed. 

Conclusion: If the funding is successful, it will enable the Association to bring joy to kids and improve the lives of those in need. It will also encourage local engagement for the development of our service provision in line with local needs and wants.