Our donors

We were thrilled to recieve a very kind donation this year from the University of Oxford's' Community Fund, a fund designed to help Oxford residents to achieve more and overcome discrimination. The funding enabled us to cover some of the costs of recruiting and training our wonderful team of volunteers, who in turn have gone on to support our Launchpad Project here in Oxford City Centre. Launchpad enables young adults who have a learning disability to get together with their peers. access their community, enjoy life as a young adult, and start to gain the skills and confidence they need to move forward in life and achieve what they want to achieve. A huge thankyou to all at the University of Oxford.

We are very grateful recipients of a generous grant from the Oxfordshire Community Foundation this year (March 2019). This grant will help us deliver our Launchpad Project, which aims to alleviate and prevent isolation and loneliness amongst people who have learning disabilities in Oxfordshire. Launchpad offers a space for young adults to meet, socialise, learn new skills and start to think about their futures and what they want to achieve as adults. Launchpad feeds into Yellow Submarine's training and employment projects, providing members with ways in which to move beyond worklessness and loneliness. We are hugely grateful for this donation, and appreciate OCF's long standing support of Yellow Submarine's work. Thankyou!

This November Yellow Submarine joined with The Blagrave Trust for the first time, in order to further our aim to enable local young people and young adults with learning disabilities to transition into adulthood as equals within their communities - gaining employment, accessing training, building relationships and avoiding isolation and dependence. We are truly grateful for the Trust's support, and look forward to working in partnership with both the Trust and our members.

St Michaels and All Saints Charities have made a very kind and generous donation to Yellow Submarine's Launchpad Project, which operates in two seperate locations in Oxfordshire. This project recieves no government funding at all, and it is the generosity of grant givers such as St Michael's and All Saints Charities that allow us to keep supporting our members and their families through the tricky transition into adulthood.

In memory of Stephen Hampson Stephen's family have donated to Yellow Submarine in his memory. Stephen loved music, social events, going out for food and drink (especially sausage rolls and fishcakes) and staying up late. Stephen had Down's Syndrome and learning difficulties and lived life to the full right up to his early death in January 2018. He lived in North Wales with his mum and dad and loved coming to visit his sister and brother-in-law in Oxford, and they always made sure to pop into Yellow Submarine for a drink while he was here. He would have loved the thought of a donation in his name to help support you in your work with young people like him!

We were very excited and grateful to be nominated by one of our member's family for a grant from the Zurich Community Trust. We are incredibly proud that the Trustees felt our work was or value, and saw fit to make a grant once again, to help fund our upcoming Launchpad project in South Oxfordshire.

We are so very pleased to welcome The Jim Cousins Trust to our honourable roll of supporters. The Trustees' donation towards the costs associated with training our young members in Witney is very gratefully recieved. It will enable us to help our members move towards higher levels of independence, employment and a fulfilling future. Thankyou!

We are really excited to be working with Comic Relief over the next few months as part of their Future Labs project. We are fast approaching our 10th birthday, and the grant we have been awarded will allow us to work on increasing our sustainability, consult with our stakeholders and plan for the next ten years! We are very grateful to Comic Relief for their ongoing support. Thankyou!

Our young people and their parents will be thrilled that, in 2019, we will be able to continue to provide respite breaks away from home, thanks to donors such as The Hedley Foundation. We are very grateful that the Trustees have agreed to cover some of the costs associated with our residential break programme, so that our young members can take those first important steps to becoming more independent. Thankyou!

We are so very appreciative of the ongoing support of the Witney Rotary Club, who have been welcoming neighbours since the opening of our cafe and training hub in the WIndrush Leisure Centre. Their donations and practical support have enabled us to offer the kind of service we want to provide, for the benefit of Witney young people. We are very grateful for their most recent donation (March 2019), assisting Witney young people to meet the costs of attending sessions and residential breaks over the school holidays. Thankyou so much to the Trustees for your ongoing support.

Baily Thomas have supported Yellow Submarine's aims and projects for some time now, and we are humbled that the Trustees have agreed to continue to support us again this coming year. This grant, towards our training and employment projects, will allow us to continue to work with our members in the most effective way possible, to help them achieve their ambitions. We would like to say an enormous thankyou to the Trustees for your ongoing support and belief in our work.

The Barbara Ward Children's Foundation has agreed to support the provision of our young people's residential break service over the next three years. We are so grateful that our young members will continue to be able to take time away from their parents, families and carers, like most other teenagers love to do, to grow in confidence, independence and ability away from home for a few days. We LOVE it when our young people start to branch out on their own, and this grant from BWCF will enable them to keep doing so. Thankyou so much to the trustees.

After hearing about us from one of our regular volunteers, members of Carfax Lodge No 5723 decided to kindly donate £200 towards our cause - thank you!

We are so heartened to be supported by our neighbours - the congregation at Christchurch in Long Hanborough, Oxfordshire, have made a donation to help us deliver our services. Thankyou so much!

Cottsway Housing very generously made a donation from their Community Fund to assist us in buying our second minibus - an essential purchase for our Witney Hub! It was made extra special by the fact that local residents were involved in deciding where funds should go - and they chose us! Thankyou!

The European Social Fund, co-financed by the Skills Funding Agency and Surrey Community Action, funded our work experience programme the Compass project for the 2014-15 Academic year. The Compass Project adopts a “learning by doing” approach to help people with disabilities to work. The funding allowed us to expand the Compass Project and support more learners.

In December 2012 we were awarded a grant by the Gannett Foundation, the charitable arm of Newquest who publish local newspapers such as the Oxford Mail and the Oxford Times. The grant was towards the setting up of a smoothie and sandwich bar to be staffed by people with learning disabilities - helping us to open the doors to our Oxford cafe!

Yellow Submarine are thrilled to receive a donation from the Green Square Group Community Fund. This donation is towards the cost of running our Compass Project, and will ensure that any potential member can access the training and development that the project provides. Thankyou to all at Green Square!

We were delighted in October 2015 to receive a wonderful donation from the HDH Wills Charitable Trust, to assist us in delivering our adult's residential respite programme. We are so pleased to be supported in helping vulnerable and potentially isolated adults in our community (and their families) to have the much needed r&r they deserve. Thankyou to all the trustees for their support.

In May 2016 we were surprised and delighted to receive a donation from Accountants and Business Advisors James Cowper Kreston. We are hugely appreciative, and this donation will be used to assist our most vulnerable members and their families. Thankyou from all at Yellow Submarine!

We are thrilled to have the ongoing support of the John Horniman's Children's Trust, having received a generous donation towards the costs of running our young people's residential breaks this year. As funding for this respite becomes harder to find, we were worried that we would be able to offer fewer of these breaks to our young members and their families. Thanks to the John Horniman's Children's Trust this won't be the case. A huge thankyou to all the trustees for your kind support.

In May 2016 we were delighted to welcome St Jame's Place Foundation to Yellow Submarine, to visit our Launchpad Project in Oxford. Meeting all our fantastic members and seeing the fantastic progress they are making resulted in a grant being made to suppor the project over the coming year. We are thrilled that this project is growing and developing, and we have now opened a parallel project in West Oxfordshire, to allow us to invite more members. Thankyou to all the representatives and trustees from St James's Place Foundation, who believe in the potential of young adults in Oxfordshire.

Fraser Hamilton and the team at M40 Offices made our day by making a donation towards the cost of running our young people's residential trips. These breaks are not only great fun for the young people themselves, but they also give parents a chance to have a rest, and spend time with their other children. These trips receive no local authority funding at all, so the the team at M40 are making a huge difference to many families over the next year. Thankyou!

Mid-counties Co-operative Community Fund has once again shown us wonderful support in making a donation towards the cost of purchasing a new vehicle to help us deliver our services in Witney. It is not the first time the MidCounties Co-operative have supported us, and we are hugely appreciative. A massive thankyou to all at the Mid-counties.

We are extremely grateful to the Miss W E Lawrence 1973 Charitable Settlement for their very kind and generous donation to our work with young adults in Oxford in preparing them for a life of employment and increased independence. This donation will help us to ensure that any young adult who would benefit from this service is able to access it. Many, many thanks to the Trustees.

We are thrilled to have recieved a grant from Next PLC, to assist us in delivering our cafe enterprise projects in Oxford and Witney. We are very grateful for the support of the board.

In February 2015 we were awarded a grant to run holiday activities for young people living in Littlemore, Blabkbird Leys and surrounding areas. This has enabled us to develop our youth club and sports days in East Oxford.

We could not be more delighted to have been selected by Oxford City Council's panel of young people and officers to recieve a generous Youth Ambition grant towards the running of our unique Launchpad project. Run on a Monday evening, this project gives the young adults who attend the opportunity to access a social life as independent and as fulfilling as those enjoyed by their non-disabled peers. Usually a first step towards socialising independently, using public transport, accessing mainstream venues such as the pub and music gigs, going speedating - this project is essential in supporting these young adults to grab life by the horns, rather than be isolated, stuck at home, and dependent on families and carers. It also provides an introduction to our training and employment opportunities, and respite breaks, and helps members and their families to aim and plan high for the future.

We are so pleased to have recieved a donation from the Oxford Spires Scout District, after their St George's Day Parade Collection. It is fantastic to know that Oxford young people are ready and willing to support their peers to have an exciting and fulfilling youth, accessing the same level of activities and opportunities. Thankyou to all the young people and volunteers at the Scouts!

In July 2017 we recieved a wonderful donation from The Boutell Bequest. We are thrilled to have the ongoing support of the trust, and would like to thank the Board of Trustees once again.

We are very grateful to the Trustees of The Bridgewater Charitable Trust, our newest supporter, for their kind donation to our work.

We are so grateful to have the continuing support of The Champniss Charitable Trust. We hugely appreciate the generosity of the Trustees' donations to our work. Thankyou for supporting our Oxfordshire members!

The Clothworkers' Foundation have made a substantial donation towards the purchase of an essential minibus for our Witney hub. This will enable us to run all the activities, training and groups that we have going on in Witney, with the transport we need to do it. Thank you to the trustees, we hugely appreciate this support.

The David Solomons Charitable Trust have kindly made a donation towards the continuation of our respite break service for adults with a learning disability. These breaks are essential in promoting independence and well-being for the holidayer, but also providing rest and recouperation for their family and/or carer. We are thrilled to have some support for this service, when it is often seen as a 'luxury' rather than as a neccessity.

We are hugely pleased to receive, for the first time, a generous donation from the Dixie Rose FIndlay Charitable Trust. This donation will assist greatly in our being able to continue to deliver residential programmes for our young people in the school holidays. Often seen as luxuries, we know how invaluable they are both to the young people and also their families and carers. Thankyou so much to all the trustees for your kind support.

Our young people are going to be thrilled this year - The Doris Field Charitable Trust has made a very kind donation towards the cost of providing our residential break programme over the school holidays. These holidays receive no statutory funding, even though they provide valuable respite for families as well as life changing opportunties for our members, and so we are enormously grateful for the support of the Doris Field Trustees. Thankyou!

We are delighted to receive a donation from the Douglas Arter Foundation, to assist us in delivering our residential respite programme for Oxfordshire people with learning disabilities. These breaks are a vital support for families and carers who give their unconditional support all year round. They need a break too, like we all do, and Yellow Submarine is only too pleased to help provide one. Thankyou to all the Trustees for agreeing to help us.

We were thrilled when our friends at The Dragon School made a donation to Yellow Submarine following their legendary Christmas Sale at the end of 2015. We would like to thank the students of The Dragon School, along with the members of the Dragon Sale Committee and all the volunteers who made the event such a success. Thankyou to The Dragon School for your ongoing support of our young peoples' activities.

The Grey Court Trust has generously made a donation towards our costs of running our Compass Project in 2019, a supported project allowing its members to gain valuable workplace and life skills, gain accreditation, and undertake work experience in our cafe projects. We are hugely grateful to the Trustees for their continuing support.

Once again we are hugely appreciative that we are able to add a new funder, The Helianthus Charitable Trust, to our Donors Hall of Fame! We are so pleased that the Trustees have chosen to support us in meeting some of the costs associated with running our two enterprise cafes. We are very, very grateful.

We are thrilled to have recently received a generous donation from The Ironmongers' Charity, to assist us in covering the cost of employing a Skills Coach to work with our Trainees and Apprentices. This member of our team is essential in ensuring that our learners have the support and coaching that they need to acquire the necessary skills and understanding. We would like to pass on a huge thankyou to the Trustees, and we are looking forward to the coming year of this project.

Our friends at The Landmark Trust have generously donated several holidays over the past few years to our members and their families. At a time when breaks for families are becoming harder to access, we are super excited and grateful that The Landmark Trust supports us to make sure that we can offer as much of a break as possible to families who might otherwise not get one. We love to hear the stories and see the photos when our members tell us about the amazing time they've had. Thankyou so much to The Landmark Trust.

Yellow Submarine is delighted to have received their first ever donation from the M J Hindley Charitable Trust. This donation will be put towards our costs in running our Launchpad project - an essential service that enables our new and existing members to engage with the charity in an informal, relaxed way. This then encourages and facilitates growth in confidence and aspiration. A huge thankyou to the Trustees for their kind support.

We are very grateful to have received, February 18', a very kind donation from the R S Brownless Charitable Trust, towards our young people's residential programme. Our young people look forward to these breaks all year round, so we are thrilled that the trust have chosen to support them this year. Thankyou!!

We are delighted to receive our first ever grant from The Rank Foundation, which will be used to help us deliver our ambitious residential break programme for our young members this summer. We are so pleased that the trustees have agreed to support us to continue this valuable work. A huge thankyou.

We were delighted this January to receive a very kind donation for the Reuben Foundation, to assist us in our delivery of our traineeships and Apprenticeships in our enterprise cafes. This donation will help us meet some of the costs which we find it most hard to fundraise for, so a huge thankyou to the Trustees.

We are once again send our huge appreciation to the Trustees of the Robert and Margaret Moss Charitable Trust, who have supported our work with a donation towards our training and work programmes for young adults with learning disabilities. These projects, each aimed at moving members towards their ultimate goals, are essential in providing a safe, supported and challenging learning environment.

The Sandford Trust have very generously made a donation towards our children's work, in particular our residential respite programme for the coming. We receive no statutory funding for our respite breaks, and so this donation will make a significant difference to the young people who holiday with us this year. Thankyou to the trustees for your support!

The Sir Jules Thorn Trust has again made a generous donation to Yellow Submarine's young people's residential break programme. We are hugely grateful that these breaks can continue to give our members and their families much needed time apart, to try new things, rest, and relax! THankyou once again to the Trustees for your support (Dec 2018).

We are thrilled to bring in the New Year with a generous grant from The Sobell Foundation. This grant, over the next three years, will enable our Skills Coach to support our young adults to complete their training and Apprenticeships, reaching the required levels of competency in Maths and English, and gaining the qualifications they deserve. A huge thankyou to the Trustees for your wonderful support.

We are so very pleased to accept a donation, for the first time, from the Stanton Ballard Trust. The Trustees' donation towards our Launchpad Project is very much appreciated, and will help us continue to run the project and cover its costs. Thankyou to the Trustees, on behalf of our members.

Thanks to the kind generosity of the trustees of The Steven Bloch Image of Disability Charitable Trust, we will be able to work with our Compass Project members to create digital and other media that will help communicate the nature of our service to those that might wish to become involved. We are looking forward to getting started in creating artwork and images for our West Oxfordshire Compass Group, to be displayed and used in our social enterprise cafe.

We were very excited to receive news that we had been awarded a grant by The Syder Foundation - to support our work with our young people through our residential respite programme. Respite breaks are becoming increasingly hard to fund, but not to justify. They offer essential opportunities for young people to grow in independence and confidence, and provide desperately needed respite for parents and carers. Thankyou to the Trustees for your kind donation.

We were delighted in July 2018 to receive a donation from the Woodroffe Benton Foundation. Their contribution to our work experience and workplace training projects for young adults who wish to gain paid employment means that we are able to work with our members over an extended period of time to help them maximise their achievements and achieve their goals. Thankyou to all the trustees at the Woodroffe Benton Foundation.

We love getting to know the neighbours, and over the past three years Witney Educational Foundation have shown themselves to be generous supporters, helping us to help Witney young people access our training and educational opportunities. We are very glad to have such great friends. Our sincerest thanks to the Foundation (Dec 2018).