BBC Children in Need awards £6,100 to Exeter project

BBC Children in Need has awarded £6,100 in new funding, as part of Curiosity – a brand new partnership with Wellcome that is providing opportunities for children and young people experiencing disadvantage, to take part in science activities that are meaningful and fun!

The first round of the Curiosity programme has awarded 32 grants of up to £10,000 to fund projects which use the power of inspiring science activities to create change for disadvantaged children and young people across the UK. The programme aims to support young people to build their confidence and self-esteem, develop life skills and expand their horizons by changing how much science they do and how they do it. Projects will encourage young people to be curious about themselves and the world around them.

One of the projects to receive a Curiosity grant is the WESC Foundation for its weekly sessions for children with a visual impairment. At the project young people will be able to further their interest in the wildlife and nature by exploring the impact of planting and building a variety of havens for birds, hedgehogs and insects.

The grant would enable the project to invest in equipment such as a time-lapse photography camera to capture and magnify the images for children with visual impairment, and enable full participation from everyone involved in an ecological experiment. In addition, the project is aiming to engage a wildlife expert to help the children understand the results of the research.

Jon Duckham, Fundraising Manager for the WESC Foundation, said: “We are delighted with this grant from BBC Children in Need and Wellcome. We want to provide children with a visual impairment with a safe space to experience and explore the natural world whilst interacting with their friends, and thanks to this award we can do just that!”

Simon Antrobus, Chief Executive of BBC Children in Need said: “We’re really excited that we are able to award these new grants in partnership with Wellcome, which will encourage disadvantaged young people around the UK to embrace an exciting and creative approach to science.”

Dr Hilary Leevers, Head of Education and Learning at Wellcome, added: “We know that taking part in science activities with friends and peers can make differences in children’s lives. Disadvantaged children and young people often have fewer opportunities to connect with science so we are delighted to partner with BBC Children in Need to enable those children to access science and explore its relevance to their lives.”

The Curiosity programme will award grants in two further rounds over the next three years. Applications for the next round of grants will open from autumn 2018, with updated information about the programme available from summer 2018. Curiosity will run alongside BBC Children in Need’s existing Main Grants and Small Grants programmes which currently fund over 2,600 projects supporting disadvantaged children and young people throughout the UK.

To find out more about Curiosity or any BBC Children in Need grants programmes, go to bbc.co.uk/Pudsey