It’s the last Charity Tuesday of the year and to finish the year off, we’re featuring The Starr Trust. The Starr Trust supports young people aged 10-18 to fulfil their potential through various mediums such as sports, arts and education. They do this by the training and development of skills and connections and mentoring as well as providing financial grants up to £5000 for young people in need living in the BN post code. They do this through local fundraising, events, creating local networks of mentors, and other interested professionals, providing opportunities for training and skill sharing and connecting communities locally and around the world. The Starr Trust believe that positive change happens best in local communities, and that a healthy community is one in which all its members are able to flourish and contribute.
The Starr Trust was founded in 2008 in memory of Edward Starr. Some of the young people they have helped this year including Nathan, who has Cerebral Palsy and is a wheelchair user. Nathan has taken part in a number of mainstream and disability sports and in September 2013 he joined a local athletics team who borrowed a racing wheelchair for him to try. The Starr Trust awarded Nathan with enough money for a new wheelchair and entered himself into events at the Stoke Mandeville Athletics Stadium including the 100m and 400m. Another young, talented person that The Starr Trust has helped is Samantha, a classical dancer from Hove who has performed on stage in the West End, on television and at theatres all over the country. Samantha was offered a place and the highly respected Tring Park School for Performing Arts but due to financial circumstances was unable to cover the cost of her accommodation. The Starr Trust has continued to support Samantha through her year at Tring.
There are lots of ways in which you can get involved and help The Starr Trust. Just £5 can cover the cost of travel expenses to training sessions. You can also fundraise, with full support from The Starr Trust who can contact local newspapers to report on your venture as well as providing collection buckets. You can also volunteer, helping out in a number of ways, from helping with administration to collecting money. The Starr Trust also take part in something called easy fundraising. If you create an account with easy fundraising, every time you shop at their partner retailers, they give a donation to your chosen cause. You can find out more about The Starr Trust here, and more about easy fundraising here.
All images belong to The Starr Trust
Holly Martin
