‘Cash4Clubs’ charity grant saves Stirling-based ex-Armed Forces veterans curling club from folding
Stirling-based SSAFA Curling Club is the latest of 200 clubs from across the UK and Ireland to receive a £2,000 grant in this year’s Cash4Cub funding round. The club – which is part of SSAFA, a charity which supports Armed Forces veterans – will use the injection of funds from the £2,000 grant to secure the future of the team by allowing it to hire its rink for matches.
Organisers of the SSAFA Curling team – that plays at the Park Ice Centre in Stirling – say the essential funding will help the club to continue hosting training and matches for players who have noted the significant social outlet the club also brings to their lives. To some members it gives them a “real sense of purpose”.
Club secretary Ian McAllister said:
“Curling is a great game and brings so much happiness to our members. Without this Cash4Club grant we wouldn’t have been able to continue.”
“It has been so essential that it has stopped us from folding the team.”
“This injection of cash gives us a huge lifeline and goes a long way to helping cover our venue costs of £3,000 each season.”
The club, which was set up in 2021, used to meet twice a week at The Park – home of the Scottish National Curling Academy.
However, the large overheads of playing the sport have forced them into reducing their games to just once a week.
Ian added:
“We have a group of former members of the armed forces who also bring their partners on occasions.”
“The value they get out of playing curling is huge. It's a wonderful game, played on the ice and requires a good sense of judgment and touch. It gives our group a real community, things to enjoy each week and often a sense of purpose.”
Not only has the grant helped the club stay afloat, the team also now hopes to bring in another group of players from the SSAFA in Glasgow.
The SSAFA is an Armed Forces charity – also known as the Soldiers, Sailors and Airman’s Families Association – which helps veterans and their loved ones all over the UK.
Since the Cash4Clubs initiative was launched in 2008, nearly £6.5 million has been invested into community sports by Flutter UKI through its brands, which include Betfair, Paddy Power, Sky Betting & Gaming PokerStars and tombola.
Last year, over 40,000 people across 50 different sports benefitted from the Cash4Clubs fund. Almost 85% of those clubs funded were from lower socio-economic groups.
Other clubs in Scotland to have received vital grants from the Flutter Cash4Clubs funding initiative include Southside Boxing Academy & Community Hub CIC in Glasgow, Athena Glasgow Women & Girls Football Academy, North Ayrshire Tandem Cycling, Men Matter Scotland, Scottish Powerchair Football Association and Invergordon Boating Club to name just a few.
Kevin Harrington, Chief Executive of Flutter UKI, said:
“The Cash4Clubs initiative is a key part of our group’s global commitment to improve the lives of 10 million people in the communities where we operate by 2030 as part of our Positive Impact Plan. Community clubs are the bedrock of sport in the UK and Ireland, and we are committed to doing everything we can to help these smaller organisations continue to make a big difference to people’s lives.”
“Last year we doubled our funding from £200,000 to £400,000 after receiving so many applications. The number of clubs needing financial assistance continues to grow, which indicates the real value these grants have for local grassroots organisations, many of which are existing on a shoestring.”
Sported’s head of marketing Mark Woods said:
"More than 700 clubs from across the UK and Ireland, spanning a massive variety of sports, submitted applications for the scheme and our priority was to support recipients delivering real impacts into their communities. So many of these groups are addressing barriers to participation to ensure that no-one is excluded from sport and physical activity due to financial, societal or physical challenges.”
“But we know every penny is precious in what they do. The funds provided through Cash4Clubs underline the huge impact which even a modest grant can have on these organisations, and it will make a difference to the people they serve."
Applications for next year’s round of grant funding will open later this year. For more information please visit https://cash-4-clubs.com/.