Keeping a water-tight roof over the heads of visitors is key to our work. For 15 years we’ve welcomed children and vulnerable young adults who need to feel safe with us, so they can concentrate on developing and growing. For our work with them to have results, it is important the accommodation is sound – it’s key to building trust.
Three years ago we embarked on roof repairs, the first major work on the lodge since 1924. Through the generosity of 13 funders and public donations, we were able to raise £99,889 for our first conservation phase, which renovated the south block roof and porch roof. This work was completed in 2021.
The remaining four roof blocks and tower are feeling their age, and we’re now beginning a new fundraising campaign to help us keep providing a warm and cosy place for approximately 5,000 visitors next year and beyond.
The slates, sarking, leadwork, mortar and chimneys need either replacement or repair. You can help in a very practical way – by buying a slate. Slates are expensive, especially since, for conservation purposes, we have to purchase increasingly rare Scottish ones. Each of these roofing tiles costs approximately £4. We will need hundreds of them. In line with our commitment to conservation, we previously salvaged and re-used as many of our existing slates as possible and will do so again. Each slate we don’t have to buy will help us with the £149,579 net cost of this work. We’ve made a start in fundraising, securing over half (£95,200) including:
– £10,000 from the Garfield Weston Foundation
– £10,000 from The Pilgrim Trust
– £5,000 from The Hugh Fraser Foundation
– £1,000 from The JTH Charitable Trust
– £200 from The Miss EC Hendry Charitable Trust
– £1,000 from our former board member Bill Crook, on his second epic sponsored cycle, just as he did in 2019.
Staff are lucky enough to work in a historic Category B listed building, but the work we do is bang up to date and addresses many modern concerns. Our programmes are responding to the pressures facing people in the wake of the pandemic as well as disengagement suffered by many young people. We don’t just need the open spaces of our grounds to deliver that work, but the offices to plan it, the kitchen and dining room for hearty refuelling of our guests, and the bedrooms and group rooms for them to rest.
Your Contribution Makes a Difference
With a little more support, we can succeed. Together, we can guarantee a dry building and a bright future for our charity. Let’s care for this historic, beautiful house that has sheltered so many. In this post-Covid world, our work with children, young people and vulnerable adults is timely.
We look forward to receiving your contribution today! (If you are a UK taxpayer and you fill in the Gift Aid form linked below, we can add 20% to your contribution.)
Thank you for being part of Wiston Lodge’s future.