National Museums Scotland has been selected to receive part of a £1 million funding boost from the ScottishPower Foundation.
Backing subjects as diverse as wildlife conservation and science-themed education to mental health awareness and theatrical productions, the ScottishPower Foundation selected the Museums as one of 17 projects to receive funding this year, bringing real benefits to communities across the country.
Funding from the ScottishPower Foundation will enable the Museums to enhance the highly successful Get Energised Programme which is widely recognised by teachers as an excellent and engaging STEM initiative, engage with audiences with STEM across its museums and through digital channels and extend its new Schools Outreach programme to engage more hard-to-reach audiences beyond Edinburgh.
The £1m fund was announced this week by Trustee and Executive Officer of the ScottishPower Foundation, Ann McKechin (pictured above, back row right).
Each of the 17 charities to receive funding from the ScottishPower Foundation will deliver events, information or campaigns that directly benefit people living in their local communities or regions. Other projects planned for this year include a theatre production by the National Theatre of Scotland, a marine conservation initiative by RSPB Scotland and a STEM learning programme by Dumfries House.
Ann McKechin, Trustee and Executive Officer of the ScottishPower Foundation said: “Applications for this year’s funding blew us away with the incredible and diverse work happening around the UK, and to see the effects of funding in action here today is extremely moving.
“The ScottishPower Foundation is proud to be able to support these projects by helping them to realise their vision of making a positive difference to the lives of people in their communities.”
Margaret Clift McNulty, Head of Development at National Museums Scotland said: “We are thrilled that the ScottishPower Foundation is continuing to support our national science engagement programme. Its generous funding enables us to bring STEM activities and learning far beyond our walls to schools and attractions across the length and breadth of Scotland.”
The ScottishPower Foundation was established in 2013 with the aim of making a significant and lasting contribution to society, enhancing the lives of people living in communities throughout the UK. It provides funding to registered charities which are involved in the advancement of education, environmental protection, citizenship and community development. The Foundation also supports non-profit organisations working in science, the arts, heritage or culture as well as the prevention of poverty and relief of disability or other disadvantage.
Projects funded by the ScottishPower Foundation during 2018 include:
1. Bangor University – Bangor University’s Reaching Wider partnership aims to increase Higher Education participation from previously under-represented groups and communities in Wales. Funding from the ScottishPower Foundation will support the university’s Bright Sparks initiative. Bright Sparks aims to excite and inspire pupils from schools across six regions of North Wales using interactive fun to engage young people in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM).
2. Dumfries House Trust – Dumfries House is an 18th century stately home in East Ayrshire. Its Engineering Education Centre provides experiential indoor and outdoor learning for Primary and Early Secondary school students, aimed to help inspire and engage young people in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). Funding from the ScottishPower Foundation will help to subsidise school visits from pupils in the South West of Scotland and allow for development and growth of the Centre.
3. Young Enterprise Scotland – Young Enterprise Scotland’s mission is to inspire young people to learn and succeed through enterprise. Funding from the ScottishPower Foundation will support the project’s Circular Economy Challenge, an exciting and innovative educational project which will prepare the enterprising young minds of today for the economy of tomorrow, including developing and marketing their own product or service which adheres to Circular Economy principles.
4. Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) Scotland – RSPB is the UK’s largest nature conservation charity and exists to tackle the issues that threaten our spectacular natural environment. RSPB’s Dolphinwatch project, based out of Aberdeen, gives people the chance to see these charismatic creatures and learn more about them and funding will enable RSPB to set up a brand new school and community engagement project across the city; inspiring a deep and lasting connection to marine wildlife and a passion to protect it.
5. Sussex Wildlife Trust – June 2018 will mark the 50th Anniversary of the beginning of nature education and engagement at Woods Mill; Sussex Wildlife Trust’s flagship education centre and nature reserve. It was the first Wildlife Trust visitor centre to open in the UK. Supported with funding from the ScottishPower Foundation, the project will celebrate the 50 year anniversary of Woods Mill, and use the opportunity to make people aware of the decline in some of the country’s most iconic species and encourage them to take action through a programme of habitat conservation and education.
6. Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod – the 2018 Inclusion Project, “SEND a message”, builds on previous initiatives to support education in the arts, reduce inequality of opportunity and make the Eisteddfod a truly inclusive event. Funding from the ScottishPower Foundation will support the aims of the project of enhancing the skills and confidence of the participants, specifically those facing challenging circumstances, and will result in the creation of a unique performance of music and dance that celebrates diversity. The project will explore dimensions of culture, beliefs, community engagement and promote respect and understanding.
7. National Museums Scotland – National Museums Scotland aims to engage children and young people around Scotland, reducing inequality and address the educational attainment gap through access to high-quality science learning activities, and to move towards realising its vision of becoming one of Scotland’s leading centres for science engagement. Funding from the ScottishPower Foundation will enable the Museums to enhance the highly successful Get Energised Programme which is widely recognised by teachers as an excellent and engaging STEM initiative, engage with audiences with STEM across its museums and through digital channels and extend its new Schools Outreach programme to engage more hard-to-reach audiences beyond Edinburgh.
8. National Theatre of Scotland – The National Theatre of Scotland (NTS) exists to produce and create world-class theatre that reaches out across Scotland and beyond. Funding from the ScottishPower Foundation will support Futureproof – a Scotland-wide festival of performance created by young people, from different backgrounds and communities, working alongside internationally acclaimed theatre artists. Futureproof will be a multi-art form, multi-platform performance event, in celebration of Year of Young People 2018, taking place in ten areas across Scotland in September and October 2018.
9. Bendrigg Trust – Bendrigg Trust is a residential outdoor education centre working specifically with disabled and disadvantaged people. Funding from the ScottishPower Foundation will support the Trust’s project ‘Adventure for All’ which seeks to support those most in need with an additional bursary. This ensures that no one is excluded due to financial or social difficulties. Without this project, many individuals would simply not be able to afford to take part.
10. Limehouse Project – The Limehouse Project, based in Tower Hamlet London, aims to alleviate the difficulties and help realise the aspirations, of the most disadvantaged members of the local community. Funding from the ScottishPower Foundation will support The Fighting Fuel Poverty (FFP) programme which will deliver free, holistic and tailored energy and fuel debt advice service to a minimum of 340 financially isolated residents aged 18+ living in low-income households, launch a three-step programme to enable individuals and families with young children to develop long-term energy and monetary savings and train at least 20 local Community Champions about fuel poverty.
11. Music in Hospitals & Care – Music in Hospitals & Care delivers high-quality concerts – performed by professional musicians – to thousands of people in healthcare settings across the whole of the UK. They work in hospitals, hospices, care homes, day centres and special schools, and their music touches the mind, body and soul of their audiences. Funding from the ScottishPower Foundation will support the organisation’s project: Live Music Off the Grid! The initiative which aims to develop and extend the charity’s reach to areas across the UK where they have identified gaps in service provision.
12. YMCA Manchester – YMCA Manchester provides tailored services to communities in Greater Manchester. Funding from the ScottishPower Foundation will support its Mental Health Champions project which aims to increase the awareness of mental health issues among young people (11-21) and provide counselling when young people first need help, in order to prevent mental health problems escalating. It also supports parents, teachers and youth workers to better understand the mental health needs of young people, allowing them to provide better support.
13. The Outward Bound Trust – The Outward Bound Trust is an educational charity that exists to unlock the potential in young people through learning and adventure in the wild. Funding from the ScottishPower Foundation will enable the Trust to continue its work with Young Carers through a new project ‘New Adventures, New Beginnings’ where they will take part in an Outward Bound Activity Day in their local area, followed by a five day residential trip together at the Loch Eil centre. All of the participants will attend a celebration event to share their experience with friends and family, and six of the young people will be selected to go on to participate in a summer programme.
14. The Prince and Princess of Wales Hospice – The Prince & Princess of Wales Hospice has been delivering free specialist palliative care in Glasgow for people, aged eighteen years and over with terminal illnesses, and providing support for their families and carers for over thirty years. The ScottishPower Foundation has already funded three complimentary therapy rooms, and funding this year will complete the final room in the Pamper Suite; the hairdressing salon.
15. Alzheimer Scotland – Alzheimer Scotland believes nobody should face dementia alone. Its Dementia Friends programme, which is supported by the ScottishPower Foundation, aims to improve the public understanding of, and empathy for, dementia, so that people with dementia can instead feel supported, accepted, and welcomed in their communities. In 2018, Alzheimer Scotland will continue mobilising many more people to significantly increase the number of Dementia Friends in Scotland.
16. The Customs House – The Customs House – an arts organisation in South Tyneside – is an integral part of the borough, delivering arts and entertainment for all. Funding from the ScottishPower Foundation will support the project’s Takeover Festival, a week-long arts festival produced by, with and for young people to develop and showcase their employability skills. The festival includes The Takeover Team, a group of under 25-year-olds who decide on the festival’s events and professional artists employed, and support the delivery and promotion of the festival whilst building arts leadership and transferable skills.
17. Theatr Clwyd Development Trust – Theatr Clwyd is North Wales’ major drama producing operation, which also presents much of its work on tour throughout Wales and the rest of the UK. Funding from the ScottishPower Foundation will create a Crime Prevention Pathway that combines Theatr Clwyd’s three educational criminal justice workshops (Justice in a Day, Connor’s Time and Junior Justice) into a comprehensive criminal justice educational programme for schools, colleges and Pupil Referral Units. Junior Justice was created in response to demand from the primary school sector aware of an increasing body of research that suggests a key moment to impact behavioural change is with 9-11 year olds.
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