Wokingham

Former cabinet minister, broadcaster and journalist David Mellor was the guest speaker at an elegant night of fundraising to officially launch this year’s Mayor’s charity in the Wokingham Borough.

Wokingham Mayor Cllr Annette Drake is dedicating her year in office to raising money for a new charity, Building for the Future for Wokingham Borough’s Disabled Children and their Families, which aims to raise enough money to purchase a community-based building for children with disabilities and their families in the borough. The Mayor held a banquet on Friday September 21 at Bearwood College in Sindlesham to launch this new charity.

Building for the Future is an umbrella group of five charities that already work with disabled children and their families locally: Peapods, Friends of Ryeish Green Bungalow, Mencap, Wokingham Autism Spectrum Partnership and Friends of Bridges. The charity’s vision is to provide a state-of-the-art building to cater for children’s individual needs as well as for community groups.

Fundraising is already in full swing, with almost £3,000 already collected from generous donations with a further £2,000 raised at the banquet.

Wokingham Cllr Drake said: “People have been so generous already, which is no surprise, as this is obviously a very worthy cause. Many parents with disabled children have told me that there is a need for a dedicated centre in the Wokingham Borough – and the parents are those who know best. I am optimistic that we will change this dream into reality. The banquet was a wonderful evening and I would like to say a big thank you to all those who helped me launch Building for the Future – not least Bearwood College for providing the venue, Lancaster Land Rover for auction and raffle prizes and Cherubs for the flowers and many others that have donated gifts and pledges.”

The charities involved are:

· Peapods: a support and action group for children with physical disabilities in the Wokingham borough
· Friends of Ryeish Green Bungalow: a group that supports the work of the Ryeish Green Bungalow, which offers highly specialised respite care for children with learning disabilities and additional ill health and/or profound physical disabilities
· Wokingham District Mencap: the local branch of Mencap, a national charity that campaigns for better rights for disabled people and offers support and advice
· Wokingham Autism Spectrum Partnership: a group of professionals from health, education and care that coordinates services for people with autism in the borough
· Friends of Bridges: a support group for the Bridges Resource Centre in Woodley, which offers short-breaks for children with disabilities and other facilities.

Anybody who wants to support Building for the Future can contact the Mayor’s secretary Ann Marie Bonwick on (0118) 974 6004.

Wokingham Borough Council