randsfoundation

Ickleford Squash Club were delighted to receive a recent grant from Rand’s Educational Foundation.

The grant will be used to replace equipment used during Junior Squash training sessions.  Some of our equipment is old and damaged, so the money will be used to replace rackets, safety glasses and squash balls.

The squash club runs two junior squash training sessions each Wednesday – one for beginners and the other for more advanced players.  Juniors aged 11 to 18 years can take part free of charge.

We also have two junior teams competing in the Hertfordshire junior inter-club leagues, and actively encourage players to take part in local junior squash tournaments.

Further information can be found on our website – www.icklefordsquash.com

The Rand’s Educational Foundation are delighted to award a grant to Lea Sports PSG to sponsor the Under 8 Tigers Red team. l.

Steve Smith, Honorary Secretary said, “Lea Sports PSG would like to express its thanks once again to the Rands Educational Foundation for its support of our Club.

Lea Sports was originally established in 1973 and has been based in the Hertfordshire village of Pirton since 1995, where it provides footballing opportunities for players from Under Sevens to Veterans across its 15 teams.

This is a very exciting time for the Club, as not only do we celebrate our Golden Anniversary this year, but plans are well-developed for a new pavilion in Pirton which we hope will be completed for the 2024-25 season. 

New players are always welcome and should contact Secretary Steve Smith for more details  secretary@leasports.com“

Rand’s Education Foundation are deeply saddened at the news of the death of Her Majesty The Queen. Our thoughts and heartfelt sympathy are with The Royal Family at this time.

As the longest serving monarch in British history, Her Majesty The Queen devoted her life to our country and we thank her for the lifetime of service and devotion she has given us.

Congratulations to all students who have secured a place for Further or Higher Education for September 2022.

Did you know if you are aged between 16 and 24 years old and live in Holwell, Ickleford, Pirton or Stondon you are eligible for a grant from Rand’s Education Foundation?

Application forms and further information can be downloaded from here

with the required evidence of your course as soon as possible.

I recently returned from my expedition to Nepal which you kindly helped the funding of. The trip was amazing and definitely a once in a lifetime opportunity and I’m so glad I’ve done it and will never forget any of it. I’ve attached a picture of me and my team after we reached the summit of Poon Hill in the Himalayas and the sense of achievement we all felt after 5 days of trekking was incredible. 

After the trek we travelled down to a village and spent some time volunteering at a local school where we helped painting a classroom, building a perimeter fence and clearing up some debris from a landslide that had occurred just before we arrived. Being able to help out was amazing and all the children and the teachers and local families were all so grateful and excited to speak to us and unsurprisingly beat us at football! As a team we left a donation at the school, some football goal posts, a couple of footballs and lots of stationary. 

After this we went back to the city (via white water rafting in the river!) and explored there. We saw a few temples, went shopping and enjoyed the last couple of days in the country with each other. 

Overall it was an amazing experience and I really appreciate the donation you gave because it made the rest of my fundraising a little bit easier.

Thank you so much once again,

Erin Dalrymple 

If you received a grant from Rand’s Educational Foundation for the last academic year and have passed the year, now is the time to apply for a grant for 2022/23.

Application forms can be downloaded here so please complete them as soon as possible.

Rand’s Educational Foundation is now on Facebook. Please follow on https://www.facebook.com/rands.org.uk

Calling all Voluntary Organisations – don’t miss out on potential funding.  The deadline for receipt of applications for Rand’s Educational Foundation grant is 28th January 2022.  If you have a requirement for a project or equipment within your youth-oriented organisation, please complete an application form or speak to a member of our governing body.  Further details and an application form can be found at here

The Trustees were delighted to learn recently that Pirton Pre-School had used their annual grant on some very worthy projects – one to improve their garden space and create a new den and another to install a new whiteboard specially for the children.

During the Easter holidays, members of staff volunteered their time to make improvements to their outdoor space. All woodwork was refreshed with a coat of paint and new, themed play areas created including a construction/digging area, water play area and music area. A portion of the grant was used to purchase the materials and many of the resources for these areas.

Once the garden was finished, their team moved on to what had formerly been known as “The Blue Room”. The grant enabled them to purchase new furniture, soft furnishings and toys for what is now called “The Den”. This room provides a quiet space for the children and incorporates their library and sensory equipment, to create a calm ambience.

Finally, they had long wished for an interactive whiteboard for the main room in the setting for the children to use. Whilst they have tablets and a small computer, these are often “worked” by the adults and they were keen to have a resource that wasn’t so much adult-directed but at child level and fully interactive for them. It would also allow more opportunity for group ICT sessions. Together with funds raised through events at pre-school, the final portion of the grant was used to purchase this whiteboard and, unsurprisingly, is hugely popular with the children.

More details about the preschool are available on www.pirtonpreschool.co.uk and they also have a Facebook page if anyone wishes to follow them.

Congratulations to all students from Ickleford, Holwell, Pirton and Lower Stondon who have secured a place at College or University for September 2021.

Did you know you that if you are aged between 16 and 24 years old you are eligible to apply for a grant from the Rand’s Education Foundation?

Application forms can be downloaded here so please complete them as soon as possible.