“What an amazing night, it was so wonderful to see the community come together and support our Prom, it made such a difference to the people we support to have their own special night,” said Sarah Mitas, Team Leader at Make.


On Wednesday 11th December the Aldingbourne Trust hosted a Winter Wonderland Prom night at the at the Royal British Legion club in Lucknow Street Portsmouth.  The Winter Wonderland theme was chosen to make it a socially inclusive event, so that people of all backgrounds and beliefs would feel welcome to come and have fun together. The night was attended by over 130 people, which included the people the Trust support, adults with learning disabilities and/or autism throughout the South coast and their families and friends. 


Sarah and her team were overwhelmed by the support they have received from local businesses and the local community in putting together this event.  The Royal British Legion Club supplied the venue for the evening, and local businesses including: Tepee Emporium who donated a flower wall, Victory Events for the balloon arches, Holly Walker and Luarla events donated chair covers and bows.  Along with the decorations made by the team at MAKE the venue looked like a winter wonderland.


The evening started with a ‘prom ready event’ at their Make@Aldingbourne enterprise.  Where local hairdressers and makeup artists turned the centre into a salon for the day, offering free hair styling and makeup for attendees to get ready for their evening.  The Trust would like to thank Jade Paddell, Liz Dayment, Karina Castle and Heather Kaberry, gave up their time to help the prom guests get ready for their special night. 


The community spirit did not stop there, as local families continued to support by helping to transport the guests to and from the event.  Jo Suter and Nikki Mell spent the evening making sure the guests arrived and got home safely.


“It has been wonderful to see the community and services to come together and support what was a great evening,” said Sarah.


The evening was full of fun, friends and dancing with music from DJ Steve Kingsley from Kingsley Nightclub. With support from the Portsmouth Lottery Fund gifts were presented by the Lord Mayor of Portsmouth.  The Lord Mayor and Lady Mayoress enjoyed the evening, dancing along with the other guests.  Steve Kingsley was given the honour of crowning the Prom King , Cameron Locke and Prom Queen, Tracy Holdcroft.


“I had the best time ever at the Make Prom, with the best mates I could have. I am made up I was made prom King.” Said Cameron.


“We want to create opportunities for the people we support to have fun and live the lives they choose.  The evening saw a lot of old friends reunited, as they have grown up and not seen each other since school.” Said Sarah.


“Fantastic, what a wonderful evening.  A huge thank you to all the staff and volunteers who made this wonderful evening happen.” Said Janet Hanby, from Havant.


“Thanks to the organisers of this prom. My daughter has been so excited waiting for the day to come and has loved getting ready, having her nails and hair done.  I asked her this morning, did you enjoy yourself? She told me it was fantastic and fabulous. Definitely a success, I would say a massive thank you for making it so special,” said Jan Ann Huge, from Gosport.


The idea for the prom came from the people supported by the Make at Aldingbourne Trust, they wanted an opportunity to get dressed to the nines and enjoy with their friends, and to include as many adults with learning disabilities and/or autism along the south coast as possible. The event was such a success; the Trust and Lord Mayor of Portsmouth are already starting to plan another event for the Spring.    


Visit our website www.aldingbournetrust.org for information about MAKE@Aldingbourne Enterprises, and more about our award winning charity that supports adults with learning disabilities and/or autism to live independent lives.

“Benjamin’s face lit up when he first saw the doll’s house, the project has meant so much to him,” said Gill Hunter Nudds, Earthworks Creative Instructor.


Earthworks, the creative arts team at the Aldingbourne Country Centre, enjoy making and creating arts projects with the people they support at the Trust.  One particular project caught Benjamin Austin’s eye, when the Trusts former Furniture Restoration Lead Jim Thompson brought in a dolls house that he had made many years before for his own daughter.


The doll’s house had never quite been finished, so he thought it would make a great project for the team at Earthworks.  On bringing the doll’s house to the Country Centre back in April, Benjamin’s face lit up and very quickly he said, “Can I do it?”


Benjamin has an interest in houses and interior design, so he was very excited to be able to take on the project by himself, choosing the colours to paint and the furnishings to decorate it.  “He has a great attention to detail, so this was the perfect project for him,” said Gill.


As Benjamin is not at the Country Centre every day, it took him just over 4 months to complete.  He wanted to give the house a modern feel, creating as much detail as possible, including handmade mosaic splashbacks for the bathroom and even making miniature picture frames for the walls.  


The house had been on display in the Earthworks department, where it caught the eye of Mrs Huckle, who has been a customer at the Country Centre for many years.  She bought the doll’s house with the proceeds to go towards the Earthworks department to continue their great work.  Benjamin was delighted that she liked it and he is looking forward to doing another one as he enjoyed it so much.

"Aldingbourne really did come to town!  It was a fantastic way of celebrating many amazing artists and getting into the Christmas spirit.  Was great fun for all the family and my little one loved it.” said Jessica Head, Creative Arts Volunteer


On Saturday 7th December, Aldingbourne Trust hosted a Christmas Market at No73 Aldwick Road, Bognor Regis.  Local crafters and the people they support had their own stalls selling Christmas crafts and gifts, along with a Christmas tombola, games, refreshments, and a visit from Father Christmas.  Peter Spencer who is one of the creative arts students, had his own stall selling Christmas items and even hosted a book signing for his book the Bluegaloo.  

“The Christmas Market on Saturday went very well - it was lovely to see so many visitors at No73 - thank you to everyone who came! We all had a great time and raised over £800 for our Creative Arts Studio” said Casper Rioseco, Community Solutions & Co-production Manager at the Aldingbourne Trust. 


If you would like more information about Creative Arts and the support and services they offer, and to find out more about their award winning charity that supports adults with learning disabilities and/or autism to live independent lives, please visit their website www.aldingbournetrust.org/creative-arts.  

“I wanted to spend the day here because it is local to me. I’ve been many times with my daughters and use the plant nursery. They make a real difference to the people they support ensuring everyone has a choice and lives an independent life.  I had such a wonderful day”.  Said Melissa Wilcock, HSBC Hampshire.  


Many charities rely on the support they receive from corporate volunteers, so the Aldingbourne Trust were delighted when Melissa choose to use her HSBC annual volunteer day to come and help out on the farm.


“Melissa was an amazing help and really got stuck in with all the daily tasks.  She helped with mucking out the top fields in the morning, then later cleaned out the guinea pig hutches, and even got involved in a goat health check and hoof trim!  She had a really positive attitude and interacted brilliantly with the people we support at the Country Centre” said Jon Corke, Farm Manager.


Vicky Mearns, one of the people supported by the Trust said, “Melissa was really friendly, I really enjoyed working with her”.


As part of their corporate volunteering scheme, HSBC have an Employee Volunteering Competition, which Melissa was delighted to win as it meant she could make a donation on behalf of HSBC to the Aldingbourne Trust.  As she enjoyed her time on the farm, she has requested that the £1,000 goes towards helping the farm to continue to improve their facilities.


“I spent the whole day outside on the farm with the animals and the wonderful people who work there. The highlight for me was meeting the lovely people, some of them were really shy when I first met them, but I've made new friends and got to spend an enjoyable day in the fresh air! I'll definitely return” said Melissa.  


To find out more about Aldingbourne Trust and their award winning charity that supports adults with learning disabilities and/or autism to live independent lives, please visit their website www.aldingbournetrust.org. 

“We are so immensely proud of our WorkAid team for winning this award” Said Rachel Benson, Deputy Manager of WorkAid at Aldlingbourne Trust. 


Representatives of the Aldingbourne Trust attended the Arun Business Partnership Awards on Friday 15th November at the Hilton Avisiford Park Hotel, helping to celebrate the success of many local businesses.


Aldingbourne Trust were honoured to win the Employee/Team of the Year award, and on being presented the award Rachel said, “I am so immensely proud of our WorkAid team; without their sheer determination and hard work, people with learning disabilities or autism spectrum conditions would really struggle to access employment in their communities.  Our staff change people’s lives; not just for the people they are supporting but also for employers.  Thank you to all of the employers over the Arun district who have welcomed people with disabilities so warmly into their teams.”


The WorkAid team at Aldingbourne Trust work across West Sussex to support people with learning disabilities and/or autism spectrum conditions who have career dreams and aspirations but sometimes need a little support to help them reach them.  Every member of the WorkAid team works in a fully person-centred way; they listen to the person’s perspectives without judgement or condemnation, they help every person to see where their strengths are and make realistic and achievable goals to get them where they want to be.


If you would like more information about WorkAid and the support and services they offer, please visit our website www.aldingbournetrust.org/workaid and to find out more about their award winning charity that supports adults with learning disabilities and/or autism to live independent lives.