Bob is a regular volunteer as well as trustee with the charity, he and Gavin thought a gentle bike ride of 2500km while raising money for a charity close to Bob’s heart would fill their summer. The money raised will go towards our summer trip which will be running for the 3rd year, giving families living in hardship a chance for a day out with all activities and refreshments paid for by the organisation. If you would like to hear more about the Cyclopaths and donate towards the Just Giving page
This month, Start Up Stirling marks the 10th anniversary of our first crisis food bank, in response to the needs of the people who were living with food insecurity in 2013. This isn’t a landmark that we are celebrating, as our services to support individuals and families who are facing hardship and poverty have never been higher. In 2022, we had the highest referral rate that they have ever had, when we supported 3,682 individuals, over a third of whom were children. We provided the equivalent of 124,080 meals last year.
Thank you to everyone who has supported us all year and especially over the festive period. It is very rare that we are closed, but we will be shut for a few days. All clients referred to us will still get their packs on these weeks.
Week Starting 19th December. We are closed Friday the 23rd. Week Starting 26th December. We are only open on Wednesday the 28th and Thursday the 29th. Week Starting 2nd January. We are closed Tuesday the 3rd.
Then we go back to normal operating hours Tuesday to Friday 9 am till 3 pm every week.
Start Up Stirling’s Christmas Appeal 2022 is all about Christmas Wishes. Sometimes making the smallest of wishes come true can make the biggest impact. Over the coming weeks, our Appeal will highlight some of the different practical support that Start Up Stirling services provides for people living in hardship across the Stirling Council area. Could you make someone's wish come true this Christmas?
This year's Harvest Appeal runs from 1st September until the 10h October.This Autumn and Winter, we anticipate that our services at Start Up Stirling are going to be needed more than ever. With the prediction of a recession, and a further rise in food and fuel costs, it is going to make it even more difficult for people to make ends meet. Please help us build up our food supplies this Autumn, so that we are able to help everyone who has been referred to us for food support, when they need it most over the Winter months.
A big thank you to everyone who has supported our Summer Food and School Bags campaign. We have had an amazing response to the campaign. Individuals, groups and businesses have all provided school bags, water bottles, stationery and lunch boxes, as well as snacks to go into the lunch boxes. Donations are still arriving, but we are already going to be sending around 80 children and young people back for the new Autumn term of school.
The school Summer holidays are a time for enjoying the sun and relaxing. However, for the families that we support at Start Up Stirling, the choice is not what destination they plan to travel to on their break, but how to stretch scarce resources to try and make ends meet just to feed their families. We know that on many occasions, parents go without food to make sure that their children aren’t hungry. Summer for them can be one of the toughest times of the year, having to feed growing children and young people for the duration of the school holiday, which has become even more difficult this year with the rising cost of food.
We were delighted to have been chosen as the nominated charity by a number of groups from Secondary Schools in the Stirling Council area, who were taking part in this year’s Youth and Philanthropy Initiative (YPI) Scotland. The scheme, run and funded by The Wood Group, is usually undertaken by a full year group of pupils and is designed to help them engage with local charities. In order for them to win the £3000 grant for their chosen charity, they must identify a social issue in their local area and prepare and showcase a presentation to a judging panel, in their own creative way.
Start Up Stirling are absolutely delighted to receive the Queen's Award for Voluntary Service.
It is extra special as it comes in the Platinum Jubilee year. This reward reflects the hard work and dedication of all our volunteers here at Start Up Stirling.
"It is a privilege to work with such a dedicated team of volunteers, and I am so proud that they have been recognised" - Tricia Cumming Volunteer Coordinator #QAVS2022
