Every year solicitors have a pot of money that is built up from people who can’t be traced. Once the Solicitor’s Regulation Authority are satisfied that all has been done to find them, law firms are allowed to gift that money to good causes.
At the end of last year, Bookers & Bolton Solicitors had collected over £3000 and asked for local groups to apply for the funds, particularly for those working with the elderly and children. They were delighted to award every penny to local organisations, groups and charities that are doing great things to support those in Alton and just beyond.
What amazing work these organisations do, and Bookers & Bolton Solicitors are proud to be a part of this thriving and supportive community.
A list of the beneficiaries is below, alongside an overview of what this money means to their community and links to the organisations themselves.
1. Alton Clothes Bank: Helping Our Community Together
GRANT USED TO BUY WHEELIE STORAGE BINS
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1190156804842983/
Welcome to the Alton Clothes Bank, a free giving Facebook page organized by the dedicated parishioners of St. Mary’s Catholic Church and local volunteers from within Alton. Our mission is to support our local community and provide assistance to those in need, offering a helping hand wherever possible.
Our Mission
In harmony with the Pope’s encyclical Laudato Si’ (Care for Our Common Home), our initiative not only aims to support our community but also encourages sustainable living. By reusing, recycling, and rehoming outgrown clothing, we contribute to a more sustainable and caring environment.
How to Participate
Donate Items: Feel free to post your donated items directly on the group page. Share details and pictures of the items you wish to donate so that those in need can easily see what is available.
Request Items: If you need clothing or other items, you can browse through the posts or reach out to one of our admins privately via messenger.
Admin Assistance: For any help or if you prefer a private donation process, contact one of our admins. We are here to assist and ensure the smooth operation of this initiative.
2. The Rosemary Foundation – Hospice at Home
GRANT TO FUND HOSPICE AT HOME CARE
The Rosemary Foundation Hospice at Home provides nurse-led care for patients, as well as support for their carers, in their own home, as life draws to a close. Whatever the condition and however long a patient may have left to live, we offer personal care and emotional support to the individual and their family for as long as it takes, whether that is days, weeks or months. We then continue to support those left behind for as long as they need us through our Bereavement and Counselling service. All of our services are provided entirely free of charge.
We offer practical help, nursing care, emotional support and counselling, alongside a day and night sitting service to provide respite for the main carer and trained nurses available 24 hours a day. As a patient’s condition deteriorates, care may be increased, with nurses visiting several times a day, working alongside and in close collaboration with primary care teams.
The Rosemary Foundation has now been in existence for 27 years. We have cared for over 3800 patients and supported their families during this time, saving countless hospital admissions. Based in Petersfield, we cover a 15-mile radius. Our patient numbers continue to increase year on year and currently sit between 35 and 40 at any time with a waiting list. We carry out over 8000 home visits each year and travel over 7000 miles per month.
Currently we are operating at 6 months average monthly expenditure (MAE) with an average monthly expenditure sitting at £78,000.
We are currently looking at ways to increase our Legacy giving in the future and community fundraising remains a lifeline for us. Applications to Trusts and Foundations continue although this has become an increasingly difficult funding stream, with so many Trusts diverting their funding to the UK poverty crisis and homelessness.
Every penny really does count at The Rosemary Foundation. All staff are part time, and we rely heavily on volunteers. We receive no statutory funding, relying entirely on community fundraising, donations, corporate sponsorship, legacies and our Friends Scheme.
All funding received goes directly towards keeping our nurses on the road, caring for patients in their own homes as life draws to a close.
3. Under 10 Manor Colts
GRANT TO FUND TRAINING FOR CHILDREN FROM LOW INCOME FAMILIES
Manor Colts Youth Football Club provides opportunities for boys and girls aged 5-18 to enjoy playing football in a safe, secure environment. Our excellent home pitches are at Jubilee Fields, Alton (next door to Alton Sports Centre).
The club runs teams with weekly training sessions, plus matches for U8 – U18 in the Northeast Hants Youth League on Saturday mornings. We also have an U8 girls’ team in the new NEHYL girls league on Sunday mornings and hope to support the formation of more girls only teams for the coming 2024-25 season.
Manor Colts is a Charter Standard club, meaning our parent coaches are Level 1 / Introduction to Coaching Football qualified, and all volunteers are DBS checked and have completed Safeguarding for Children.
4. Healing Hubs
GRANT USED FOR REFRESHMENTS
The Healing Hubs is a charity that has 3 projects in Alton. We provide a weekly warm hub, providing free brunch for older adults both living in the sheltered housing at Orchard House and for local residents who are financially challenged.
We also run a weekly Meeting Place at the Alton Rugby Club from 11-2pm. This is a social group providing refreshments and a light lunch and activities. This group is for all ages.
We also provide free telephone Befriending’s weekly calls for people of all ages who are lonely and isolated. Taking referrals from NHS social prescribers.
5. Amery Hill School
GRANT USED FOR MENTAL HEALTH PROJECT
From Teacher Chris Broad
I am currently the Head of Year 10 at Amery Hill School (14-15 year old) and last year I managed to secure a local neuroscientist to come into school to deliver sessions to pupils, staff and parents. This project was received really well by all, and we are now looking for support to expand this project to all pupils and all parents at Amery Hill School.
TJ Power is from Farnham and has teamed up with Joe Wicks, The Body Coach and is trying to promote the effects of social media on changes in brain chemicals and brain function. Please take a look at his instagram account for more details, it’s really fascinating!
Below is a link from youtube that explains a little bit about TJ’s work and gives an insight into the types of conversations he will share with pupils and parents.
Thanks once again for your donations, it has really made a difference to us being able to provide this particular opportunity and support to our pupils and parents.
https://youtu.be/Q1mJXYAdWUM?si=g3sKfECMOXwqvnMi
6. Medstead Girl Guides
GRANT SPENT ON A TRIP TO AN ACTIVITY CENTRE
https://www.girlguiding.org.uk/what-we-do/guides/ From Guide Leader Wendy Munt
Thank you SO much Bookers & Bolton Solicitors for your very kind donation to our 1st Medstead Girl Guide Unit. It’s hugely appreciated and will really help when we take the girls to an activity centre next Spring. Your donation will be used to buy many badges which recognise and celebrate the many valuable life skills the girls will learn whilst doing lots of challenging new activities.
With thanks and kind regards from Vicky, Tara and myself Wendy Munt.
https://www.medsteadpc.org/_VirDir/CoreContents/Organisations/Display.aspx?id=5669
7. Wooteys Infants School
From Deputy Headteacher Tracey Thomas
GRANT USED FOR SENSORY REGULATION PACKS
https://www.wootey-inf.hants.sch.uk/
As expected, since the pandemic, we have seen the impact on social, emotional and mental health needs of our very young pupils and their families.
In addition, the current climate in the world of education is also evidencing a huge increase in the number of children with complex needs needing to be placed in mainstream schools, due to the lack of specialist places available. Funding for schools is not adequately (or even anywhere near) meeting the needs of these children.
At Wootey, we have seen this first hand and are desperately keen to adapt our provision for these children.
In the short term, we are in urgent need of sensory regulation packs for our children with the most complex needs and this is where we are hoping our bid for funding may be successful.
Each pack would contain ear defenders, a ‘wobble cushion’, a ‘weighted blanket’ as well as a variety of ‘focus toys’ to help support children with their sensory requirements. We simply do not have the funding available to enable us to support the number of children who require these items, as the very small level of funding we do have is used to give children therapy sessions and adult support in class.
Longer term, we aim to train a member of staff to become a Forest School Practitioner; to buy into a Thrive Assessment package to enable us to have a trained Thrive practitioner and to begin fundraising for a sensory room (as seen at Bushy Leaze).
8. The Vokes Club
GRANT USED FOR A NEW GAS COOKER
Vokes Lunch Club is a warm, friendly and welcoming club open to anyone over 60 years of age. We provide a fresh home cooked 2 course lunch prepared by our chef or cook Monday to Friday. We greet our guests from 11.00 am for tea, coffee and biscuits, lunch is served from 12.00 followed by tea and coffee. Our guests usually leave at about 1.00 pm. We are supported by a wonderful team of volunteers that come and help serve and chat to our guests.
If you would like to join us for lunch please call 01420 84235 from 9.30 am at least one day in advance to book as this helps with our catering.
01420 84235
From Terry Blake, Chairman of the Trustees, Vokes Lunch Club
Thank you so much for your offer of a £500 donation towards our gas cooker installation upgrade. We are delighted with this generous donation which is a very welcome contribution towards the cost of upgrading our gas cooker installation. The work which it will help to fund is essential to meet current regulations and will ensure that we can continue operating and providing hot meals to our elderly members.
9. Alton Counselling Service
GRANT USED TO PROVIDE COUNSELLING
We are a registered charity providing affordable and professional counselling in Alton for the past 50 years. We are proud of the trust that we have developed through our work in our community, but as a small local non-profit charity that does not receive any funding from the government, we are always in need of donations and grants from other sources.
Your donation will enable us to continue to help subsidise counselling fees for people in our community from age 16 and above who are suffering from mental health problems. Our clients are still under pressure due to the ongoing cost of living crisis and the majority are not able to pay for their counselling fees. We believe that your donation will provide us with the means to continue to offer this much needed support and to ensure that nobody is denied access to counselling for solely financial reason in our community.
From Lissa Morris, Service Manager
This donation will go towards our bursary fund to help us continue to offer low-cost counselling in our community and to ensure that nobody is denied access to counselling for solely financial reason.
Alton Counselling Service Tel: 01420 89207 www.altoncounselling.org.uk
Reg’d Charity No 279857 Reg’d Office: Quaker Meeting House, Church Street, Alton, GU34 2DA
Member of: BACP, NCN (National Counselling Network) and BPC
10. Alton Stroke Support Group
GRANT USED FOR A DAY TRIP TO ALICE HOLD
Alton Stroke Support Group is proving to be an invaluable resource for those both directly and indirectly (carers and family) affected, with over 40 people regularly attending our monthly meet ups and other local activities.
Group members have shared that stroke is very isolating and lonely and so we would like to fund a day for our group at Alice Holt with Inclusive Cycling and outdoor yoga on February 8th 2025. Your donation would enable us to secure this day, which gives our group the opportunity to join outdoor activity in the forest, great for mental health and wellbeing.
11. Alton Hard of Hearing Group
GRANT USED FOR LIP READING LESSONS
HARD OF HEARING GROUP – our members are mainly elderly and meet at All Saints Church Hall. There are 3 separate groups in fact.
Firstly – a monthly meeting, to which we invite speakers, and have other special events such as our Wimbledon Tea where we provide scones with jam and cream! Members pay a small subscription plus we run a raffle to raise funds.
Secondly – we have a Knitters Anonymous group who meet to make items for eg premature baby units. Wool is generally donated, and the knitters are provided with tea and biscuits.
Thirdly – we have Lip Reading classes. We are very fortunate that a qualified tutor comes from Portsmouth to provide these and her visits are considered very helpful by the attendees who have varying degrees of hearing loss.
The subscriptions and raffle from the first group help to subsidise the Lip Reading classes. But it would be really helpful to have an additional ‘pot’ to ensure that they can continue in 2025. The classes generally take place for 9 months of the year as there is a summer break.
From Annette Blackman, Hard of Hearing – Organiser
Very many thanks for letting me know that Booker & Bolton Solicitors have kindly decided to donate towards the Lip Reading lessons that the Hard of Hearing group arranges for some of our members.
We are delighted that the very valuable service will be able to continue beyond the New Year as a result of the kind donation.
12. Open Sight Alton
GRANT USED TO FUND CHRISTMAS MEALS FOR VISUALLY IMPAIRED AND BLIND PEOPLE
Alton Open Sight Social Club is a Hampshire based charity that provides support to those with, or at risk of, sight loss. One way of doing this is through local social clubs which provide an opportunity for visually impaired and blind people to make friends and share experiences. Each club is funded independently and run by volunteers.
Here in Alton, we have a friendly and successful club that has about 20 members, all of whom are elderly (several being over 90), many being widowed and living alone. All are having to cope with diminishing eyesight or blindness. We meet once a month at All Saints Church Hall with volunteer drivers collecting those who cannot make their own way there.
At each meeting we have a guest speaker, afternoon tea and information sharing on matters relating to vision. For this we charge each member £4 a session which contributes towards the rent of the hall and cost of the speakers.
This year we would like to hold a festive Christmas lunch for our December meeting so have booked the entire restaurant at The French Horn on Monday 9th December, at a cost of around £1000. With the increased cost of living, combined with the reduction in winter fuel payments, we feel we can only ask our members to pay £10 each, so we are seeking grants and sponsorship from local businesses and organisations to help meet this shortfall. Christmas can be a difficult time for elderly people living alone so we hope this will be something that our members will look forward to and enjoy, which will help with their mental health.
From Sue White, Secretary, Alton Open Sight
Thank you so much for Bookers and Bolton’s kind donation of £100 towards the Alton Open Sight’s Christmas dinner at The French Horn. Your money will pay for the meals of 3 blind or partially sighted members.
13. Eggars School
GRANT USED TO HELP CREATE A SAFE SPACE CALLED THE HAVEN
The Haven is designed as a calming room for students who feel overwhelmed during the school day. Many of our young people face difficult, often traumatic, experiences, and this sensory space will provide them with a place to decompress, gather themselves, and regain their focus. By offering a peaceful and supportive environment, we can help them manage their emotions.
Research has shown that sensory rooms can have a significant positive impact on students’ well-being and academic performance. For instance, a study published in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders found that the use of multisensory environments reduced disruptive behaviours by 45% and increased engagement in learning activities by 33% among students with special needs.
At Eggar’s, we believe that every student deserves to feel valued, supported, and invested in. The Haven is just one way we are working to make that happen. We have created a mood board to illustrate our vision for the room. I have attached this mood board to this email, along with some images of what the room looks like at the moment, to give you a clear before-and-after perspective of our project.
14. START
GRANT USED TO FUND COUNSELLING
At START (Sexual Trauma & Restorative Therapy) we see children and adults from North Hampshire including clients from Alton, who have experienced sexual abuse and assault, be it historic or recent, for counselling and /or group work.
In March 2025 we will experience further funding cuts from HCC and the impact of this on all our clients and services will be profound, particularly for our under 18 service. The earlier we can provide support to children after the event the more beneficial the outcome.
15. Anna Chaplaincy
GRANT USE CHANGED AFTER THE PROCESS WAS AGREED AND SO WE ARE WAITING TO HEAR WHAT IT WILL BE USED FOR
