Trusts & Foundations

We were incredibly pleased to have the support of Pets Foundation, who funded the purchase of a new Bennington ‘Fun Bug’ Carriage.

This carriage was bought to replace the previous carriage and is purpose-built, so that the carriage is lighter, more manoeuvrable and more practical for riders and horses. It’s more open, with no sides, to avoid the rider feeling confined and they can see more around them.

Riders can sit in the seat or go on in a wheelchair, to sit aside the driver and maybe even take the reins!

This project is ongoing and is supported by a multitude of funders.

As a charity, we subsidise our rates to ensure our services are financially accessible. As you can imagine, this comes with a cost to us as a centre, which we call the Bednight Funding Gap. This is the gap between the amount guests contribute to their stay and the true cost to us as a centre. We must fundraise for this in order to ensure more guests are able to benefit from the Calvert Exmoor experience.

Funders across the UK have been kind enough to support this cause recently. Some have chosen to restrict this funding for guests from particular areas, or of particular ages or living with specific disabilities, in order to abide by their own charitable aims.

Recent successes include:

• Funding for guests with Learning Difficulties
• Funding for guests under the age of 25 with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities
• Funding for guests from Devon

In the last year, we have managed to secure funding from a variety of sources for over £54,000 towards the revitalisation of our fleet of accessible bikes.

With regular use over many years, many within our fleet of accessible bikes were in need of replacing. From accessible e-trikes to front-loading bikes that allow a wheelchair to be secured at the front and with even more bikes on the way, we are incredibly excited to be able to offer this incredibly popular sport to even more of our guests with varying needs.

In spring 2024 we delivered a pilot grant-funded breaks project working with schools that specialise in teaching young people categorised as SEND, typically located in areas of high economic deprivation surrounding the centre. Over 150 children have benefitted from this project so far this year and we are excited to continue this scheme with support from another grant funder this autumn.

With a centre built around a Grade II listed farmstead, much of our historical artifacts include original mechanisms for a waterwheel, which can be seen in our barn.

Due to age and natural degradation over almost three decades, a listed door that protects the waterwheel was in need of replacement and is temporarily boarded up, as seen in the picture.

A generous funder has awarded a grant to replace this waterwheel door and we are eagerly awaiting its arrival, any day now!

Our Bursary Scheme has multiple funders. Having awarded £36,000 in bursaries last year, we are aiming to award even more this year.

An incredibly generous funder recently donated a large sum to our Bursary Scheme specifically to be used for those under the age of 18, which, with our recent influx of school visits, has meant more children from these schools have been able to benefit from the Calvert Exmoor experience!

With frequent use over the years, many canoes within our fleet have been in need of refurbishment or replacement. This last year, we were grateful to receive funding that ensured the purchase of two new Enigma Canoes.

We are still in need of two more of these canoes to complete our fleet.

As you can imagine, the frequent use of our safety equipment on our rope-based activities like abseiling, climbing and crate stacking, involves frequent replacements or maintenance. While we have a budget for general maintenance, the cost of replacing many of our equipment items would exceed this, so we also raise money for this as a project.

We were very grateful to receive a donation that saw the purchase of some new Figure 8 metalwork devices, which are used for descending smoothly in abseiling.

In our Equestrian Centre, our ceiling-track hoist was nearing its decommission date. With a generous grant award from Morrisons Foundation, we were able to have this replaced with a more modern version of the hoist. The new hoist (pictured) is now in use and is making things much easier for both our staff and those who need extra support with mounting a horse.

From farrier visits, vet bills and stables maintenance to staff time and field maintenance, each of our twelve horses are estimated to cost the centre £8,000 a year. With that in mind, many funders who prefer to support equine-related causes choose to donate core funding that is ringfenced for use by the Equestrian Centre.

We have multiple funders supporting our Equestrian Centre, from funding staff training and apprenticeship schemes to core costs associated with running the centre.

For example, a kind funder has recently agreed to fund the cost of vital work to fencing around one of our horse fields. This is greatly appreciated, as it not only affects the wellbeing of our horses, but, by doing so, affects the experience of our guests. This was not an expense that we, as a charity, were able to pay and we are incredibly grateful for the foundation’s award.

We can’t wait to see the impact of Toyota Community Fund’s grant on the renovation of our sensory room. With their generous help and that of our wonderful volunteers, we are currently renovating the space and, by doing so, we will be opening it up to the local community for hire by the hour. This will not only benefit more people but also strengthen our connection with the local community.

From apprenticeship schemes to staff qualifications, we often receive grant funding towards the all-important development of our incredible staff.

Some examples of funding towards this cause:

• Equestrian Centre Apprenticeship scheme
• Activity Instructor Apprenticeship scheme
• Watersports qualifications
• Internal and external training for introduction of new activities