West Berkshire First Response, Bishop's Green Youth Project and Resource for Mental Health to Receive Major Charitable Awards

Greenham Common Trust has announced the three local projects that will share £80,000 in major awards as part of the Trust’s 2006 charitable grant aid scheme: West Berkshire First Response, the Bishop’s Green Youth Project and Resource for Mental Health.

West Berkshire First Response, the partnership project between Rotary Club Newbury, Royal Berkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust and Volunteer Centre West Berkshire, is aiming to locate Automated External Defibrillators (AED), along with trained volunteers, in 18 locations around West Berkshire to enable a rapid response to victims of cardiac arrest.

Each year 162,000 people die in the UK from unexpected cardiac arrest, the highest levels in Europe. Electric shock treatment with an AED soon after a cardiac arrest can significantly improve the chances of a patient’s survival and the funding of this project will enable locally based equipment and trained operators throughout West Berkshire. Greenham Common Trust has agreed to provide the £38,000 needed to fund the project in full.

Richard Davies of Royal Berkshire Ambulance Service says: “Following a cardiac arrest an electric shock from a defibrillator can often start the heart beating again. Time is crucial in these situations and the funding of this project will enable a rapid, community based response to life-threatening situations.”

Gary Poulson of Volunteer Centre West Berkshire adds: “This funding is excellent news and we can now begin our search for 215 volunteers from around West Berkshire to turn the project into reality.”

Greenham Common Trust also chose the Bishop’s Green Youth Project to receive a major award of £24,000 to help support the project’s full-time youth worker and project co-ordinator at Bishop’s Green. The project is part of the regeneration of Bishop’s Green, which lies within the most deprived rural ward of Basingstoke and Deane Borough, and provides help and support for young people. It operates an Internet Café, which is run by young people as a social enterprise, which provides a safe meeting place, information and informal education.

Ian Green of Bishop’s Green Youth Project says: “We are very grateful to the Trust for this funding that will help to sustain the project over the next three years and provide many young people with opportunities to develop and mature into responsible adults.”

Resource for Mental Health is being provided with £18,000 by Greenham Common Trust. Based in Bartholomew Street, Newbury, the charity assists those whose lives have been disrupted by mental health difficulties, helping them to gain work skills and confidence. The funding from Greenham Common Trust will re-equip a kitchen to provide a catering skill training facility.

Katy Dawson of Resource for Mental Health says: “Over the past year at our project HQ in Reading our training facilities and support have enabled 25 people gain employment – individuals who did not have the skills or courage to do so. With the support of Greenham Common Trust we will now be able to extend the project’s reach across West Berkshire.”

Stuart Tagg, chief executive of Greenham Common Trust, says: “These three projects were chosen by our Distribution Committee from a shortlist of six. The support and funding of such projects is exactly why the Trust was formed in 1997 and this is being extended this year with the introduction of ‘The Greenham Gift’ which will see a further £82,000 given to community projects, to be decided by members of the public.”

For further information contact:
Andrew Barber, Greenham Common Trust, on 01635 817444
Richard Davis, Royal Berkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust, on 07834 677913
Gary Poulson, Volunteer Centre West Berkshire, on 01635 49004
Ian Green, Bishop’s Green Youth Project, on 01635 268125
Katy Dawson, Resource for Mental Health, on 01635 35003.