A fundraiser's perfect day

I have lots of good days working at Westonbirt Arboretum, who wouldn’t? But the day I picked up a cheque for £250,000 (the first instalment of a £500,000 award) definitely tops the list.

The great news is that the Westonbirt Project is the Cultural Facilities Flagship Project for Biffa Award's 2012 award scheme. The even better news is that Biffa Award are going to be funding the information areas in and around our new Welcome Building.

Of course, we think we have a brilliant project; of course, we know that Westonbirt Arboretum is an amazing place and of course, we think that our Welcome Building would be a great showcase for a Cultural Facilities Flagship Project... but would they?

After a long application process and a very nervous (butterflies in stomach) wait, I can't even begin to explain how happy we all were when we found out that our hard work had paid off.

And that’s why Simon Toomer (Arboretum Director), Miranda Winram (Project Director) and I made our way to the Historic Dockyard in Chatham, Kent to take part in the Biffa Awards 2012 Building Communities Awards Ceremony.

It was fantastic to hear about the work charities all over the country are doing, thanks to funding from Biffa Award, and we are really excited to be a part of that.

Not to mention the fact that, thanks to Biffa Award, we are now one giant step closer to achieving our dreams and making Phase One of the Westonbirt Project a reality.

(PS as an aside – Simon took the opportunity to learn a new skill on our trip round the Historic Dockyard and is now a rope maker extraordinaire. I wasn’t allowed to publish the photos but I am a fundraiser after all, so would consider breaking the rules in return for a reasonable donation!!!)

Useful links

Find out about the Westonbirt Project

Visit the Biffa Award website