Alan Boswell Group Charitable Trust Winter 2024 Update

The Alan Boswell Group Charitable Trust continues to deliver on its commitment to make a difference to charitable causes in the areas that we operate in. We wanted to provide an update on the difference our donations are making to some of the charities.

In the last quarter, the Trust reviewed 82 applications and awarded over £149,862 in grants.

Here are some of the grants that were made:

Variety, the Children's Charity

Variety fund support for disabled children throughout the UK. £15,000 was donated to enable the purchase of a 14-seater accessible ‘Sunshine Coach’ to run their Great Days Out programme in North Norfolk.

The Assist Trust

£5,000 was donated to The Assist Trust to support their Independence Support Scheme which provides job support and internal work placements for adults with learning disabilities.

Suffolk Wildlife Trust (SWT)

SWT received a £25,000 donation to fund their new youth outreach group. SWT manage 50 nature reserves to secure a bigger and better connected landscape for wildlife, whilst engaging and inspiring people of all ages.

Age UK Norwich

A £25,000 grant was donated to Age UK Norwich to support their Home Befriending service, allowing it to be extended from telephone-only to home visits for those who are considered isolated.

Whitwell & Reepham Railway Preservation Society

The Society applied for a grant to help with repairs at Whitwell station. Our donation of £6,780 will fund the installation of a new fence to replace the original made from pallets 15 years ago.

St Helena Hospice

£5,385 was donated towards providing specialist medical beds for their 18 bed hospice in Colchester.

Senzala Cambridge Community Project

£3,000 was donated towards funding their free capoeira (music, movement and martial arts) classes for children.

Nene Valley Railway

£5,000 was donated to help fund the renovation of a level crossing and relaying tracks.

Circus Starr

£2,045 was donated to fund 70 tickets to their Norwich show for children with disabilities, families on low income, and those facing challenges such as domestic violence, bereavement or living with a life-limiting condition.

We also received some fantastic feedback from charities that have received donations from the Trust in the past:

Sue Ryder Thorpe Hall Hospice

Sue Ryder Thorpe Hall Hospice in Peterborough provide expert palliative care, advice and support. The Trust donated £5,000 in July 2024.

Patient feedback of the Medically Light Beds has been positive, with all those using the newly introduced service at Thorpe Hall rating their care as excellent or good; saying they felt safe, that they were treated with dignity and respect, and that they felt involved in decisions about their treatment and care.

Hillside Animal Sanctuary

£15,000 was donated to the sanctuary in July 2024.

“Your donation was such a wonderful help in caring for our 4,000 rescued animals. The funds were used to buy a desperately needed new ‘Paddock Sweeper’, which is vital to the day-to-day running of our Shire Horse Sanctuary in West Runton. Being able to efficiently and effectively clean our paddocks improves the grass for our animals, keeping them happy and healthy. Having a brand new sweeper means it will hopefully continue to work for us for many years to come!”

Find out more about The Alan Boswell Group Charitable Trust