Earlier this week I enjoyed a wonderful visit to Swindon Interactive Arts Service (SWIAS) at St Andrew’s Church in Moredon. The group has been running for 12 years, offering a weekly session for adults with learning disabilities and their Carers. There is a wide range of activities on offer, including arts and crafts, cooking, and visits. They also put on a very popular Christmas play.
SWIAS is run by a group of fantastic volunteers who work incredibly hard to offer this brilliant service, which has proved to be so important for the people it supports. It was a real joy to sit down with one of the members, Sarah, who proudly showed me her scrapbook of photos from the various activities she had taken part in over the year.
The group recently reached out to me asking for advice around fundraising, as they need to raise about £12k per year to continue this service. Following this, I linked the group with Swindon Voluntary Service, who have been working with the charity’s trustees to identify potential grants – which I will, of course be supporting. It would be fantastic if any local businesses or anyone doing any potential fun runs or marathons would consider them as a charity to support – it really would make a difference, no matter how small.
