Dukes Barn Trust

Dukes Barn Climbing Wall

Fundraising for Dukes Barn Trust

Story

The staff and trustees of Dukes Barn are justly proud of the achievements they have made to date, but there is always more to do. Following the opening of the new All Weather Sports Surface and in line with our aims of providing activities which are fully inclusive for young people of all abilities we are now planning to build an exciting new climbing wall with unique and specific provision for non ambulent youngsters.

We already have planning permission, detailed plans, provisional costs and a team of dedicated and enthusiastic people committed to making it happen, as well as the support of the young people themselves, who can’t wait to get climbing .

The facility will be housed in an environmentally friendly building with energy efficient heating, lighting and insulation and will include:

§ a specialised climbing wall to enable a wide spectrum of abilities to climb side by side for mutual support and encouragement

§ an overhead rail system to support the weight of disabled climbers

§ pulleys to allow those with multiple disabilities to be hoisted to the top of the wall before abseiling down

§ a viewing platform where drinks and snacks can be served to those who just want to relax and observe or are waiting to join the fun

§ a disabled access lift to all levels

§ disabled access toilets and changing rooms

§ storage for special equipment for disabled use.

The cost of this unique project is in the region of £350,000. Our aim is to raise the full amount by the end of 2012, when construction will begin, taking up to a year to complete.

Once up and running, the project will be ongoing providing a valuable sports facility for disabled people, not available anywhere else in the region, long into the future. The young people who benefit will acquire a lifelong interest in and love of sport which will continue well into their adult life. Information from carers, teachers and parents endorses what disabled young people tell us, that the more varied activities they have access to, the less isolated they feel and the more confidence and experience they have to tackle other problems in life.

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About the charity

Dukes Barn Trust

Verified by JustGiving

RCN 1077374

www.dukesbarn.org

We are a charity providing educational outdoor adventure activities for disadvantaged and disabled young people of all abilities. Our main focus is children with special needs including young people with autism, Asperges Syndrome, Downs Syndrome, the hearing and vision impaired and a range of physically disabled young people including wheelchair users. Many of our young people suffer from one or more of the above. We also run courses for disadvantaged primary and secondary school children from mainstream schools in poor inner city areas. Our aim is to ensure that all young people, regardless of ability, special need or disadvantage, are given the opportunity to experience quality outdoor education, in a safe environment, to improve not only their physical fitness but their confidence and self esteem to enable them to meet the challenges of everyday life, today and in the future. We have recently completed an all weather wheelchair friendly sports area and upgraded the entrance paths to our sensory garden to make wheelchair access easier. Our next challenge is to raise the funds to build a state of the art indoor climbing wall with unique and specific provision for non ambulent youngsters, which will demonstrate to other organisations and individuals what we at Dukes Barn already know, that being physically disabled does not mean being excluded from exciting and healthily competitive sporting pastimes.