Pitch to the Panel

It will be a glittering night of celebration on 9th November at the Corn Exchange, Newbury, as local good causes take to the stage to pitch for a share of £100,000 in the Trust’s Dragons’ Den style gala event, Pitch to the Panel.

All the projects will be for the benefit of local people, such as transport for the elderly, projects for kids, medical equipment for our local hospital or an arts or environment project.

You are invited to apply for FREE tickets and come along not only to cheer but also to vote by mobile phone for your favourite project (you can also vote before the event at www.pitchtothepanel.com).

The Trust will donate £1 for every vote (restricted to 1 vote per person) made both online and on the night of Pitch to the Panel.
 

2015 Pitch to the Panel finalist, Andrew Sharp from West Berkshire Rapid Response Cars, said: “We were genuinely excited to be listed as finalists, and went in to this with no expectations. We are absolutely delighted to get all of our required funding. Without this, we would not have been able to supply winter protection kits for our responders.”

Last year at Pitch to the Panel West Berkshire Therapy Centre also received the funds required to pay for 5 power assisted machines to help give patients a comprehensive range of bodily movements.

After the event, John Holt, from the charity, said: “We were all absolutely over the moon. It will allow us to do what we need to do and provide more capacity during ‘disabled-friendly’ hours. We were pitching on behalf of our clients and we were very pleased with the result we got for them.”

Listen to the 2015 Dragons          Listen to the 2015 Winners

Pitch to the Panel 2016 Dragons

• David Bailey, Director of Greenham Common Trust
• Anne Murdoch, Principal of Newbury College
• Andrew Mackenzie, Managing Director of the Vineyard Hotel
• Andy Murrill, Editor of the Newbury Weekly News.

Pitch to the Panel 2016 finalists

• 1st Burgheld and Sulhamstead Scouts
• Newbury Community Resource Centre
• Newbury Tennis Club
• Age Concern Newbury and District
• Helen & Douglas House
• Crossroads Care West Berkshire

Online voting is now open and closes 1 day before the live event on 9th November.

The Winners

2015

• £13,252.92 for Dingley Family and Specialist Early Years Centre to pay for a Family Support Worker
• £4,733 for West Berkshire Rapid Response Cars (WBRRC) to pay for its ‘winter-safety’ package
• £5,946 for Five a Day Market Garden to fund its ‘Big Carrot’ project
• £10,098 for Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshsire Wildlife Trust (BBOWT) for an Access Audits Officer to work towards enhancing the visitor experience to five nature reserves in West Berkshire
• £29,395 for West Berkshire Therapy Centre for 5 additional power assisted machines to help tone muscle and give patients a comprehensive range of bodily movements
• £37,807 for The Trust for Sustainable Living (The Living Rainforest) to open an island rainforest glasshouse