Swindon Woodturners Branch Out With Awards For All
13.08.2008 18:45:00
A Swindon woodturning group is branching out with the help of an Awards for All grant of £4,910. It was one of 57 grants in the South West totalling £354,604 in the latest round of awards.
North Wiltshire Woodturners Association will spend its £4,910 grant on top-of-the-range equipment that will help the group learn new skills and attract new members. The Association has expanded from six to 55 members in its 18 months of existence and features artists with a range of abilities and ages. Woodturners traditionally work with lathes and chisels to produce everything from decorative arts to bowls, jewellery and games.
Brian King-Fisher, Project Manager, said: “Woodturning is very relaxing, it’s a past-time that lets you forget your cares and instead produce lovely pieces of sculpture or functional items. There used to be just a handful of us that met in the local pub but we have expanded very rapidly and now use the village hall in Hook, on the outskirts of Swindon. Most of us started doing it as a hobby but we’ve progressed and reached a point where we want to take our skills further.
“The group also gives people a chance to socialise with other woodturners from the whole of the North Swindon area and beyond, as well as to share skills and ideas. For the professionals among us it’s a great chance to meet people because many long hours are spent in workshops crafting items on one’s own. While we own a lightweight lathe that the group uses to produce work this funding means we can invest in a much larger, professional lathe that is four feet long and three feet high. It will really help us to develop our skills and be better craftspeople all round.”
The group will also buy books and a store shed, as well as video and sound equipment so that members can enjoy special woodturning workshops hosted by experts in the field. They also plan to advertise their activities in local employment services with a view to helping those looking for work learn new skills that might help generate income.
Awards for All is the small grants scheme administered by the Big Lottery Fund on behalf of Lottery good cause funders, Arts Council England, Big Lottery Fund, Heritage Lottery Fund and Sport England. The scheme makes awards of between £300 and £10,000 to grass-roots community groups and voluntary organisations.
Mark Cotton, Big Lottery Fund Head of the South West region, said on behalf of Awards for All: “Groups such as the North Wiltshire Woodturners Association show just how quickly community groups can shoot up and expand. With 55 members and counting this new equipment will help to ensure the Hook woodturners go on producing fantastic pieces. As one of 57 groups awarded Lottery grants this month they will share in £354,604 of funds distributed across the South West.”
Client name: Big Lottery Fund
