MULTISPORT, EXPANSION AND REFURBISHMENT PROJECT

Aim

Refurbishment of the SALTO Centre to create additional usable space & improved accessibility to toilet facilities, changing & welfare areas.

How can you help SALTO to contribute to the United by 2022 Birmingham Commonweath Games Legacy?

Birmingham's objectives are to reach the most disadvantaged communities by supporting projects that are:

• Community led, enabling communities to put their ideas into action and work to solve the challenges on their doorstep.
• Keep the Games for Everyone vision alive and promote fairness and social inclusion.
• Ensure venues and other Games assets are turned into well used and well-loved community spaces after the Games.

Our new multi-sport, expansion and refurbishment project aims to make vital improvements that will ensure the SALTO Centre is welcoming, as inclusive and accesssible as possible, well used and a real community space. We want you to feel part of our gymnastics community and to do that we have some amazing incentives for all our pledgors. THANK YOU for taking the time to read our Crowdfunder appeal and thank you in advance for any pledges you make.

Who are we?

SALTO is one of Luton’s largest community sports clubs, we give young people regular access to a range of gymnastic activities from the trampoline to acrobatic gymnastics and other fun activities to get children fit and healthy. 

Our mission is to improve our community’s health and mental well-being through gymnastics in a safe environment. We use this incredible sport to transferable skills that can help throughout their lives. Pre-Covid, we had 1000+ registered members and this dropped to about 625.

There was a corresponding over 50% drop in subscription income. This placed severe strain on charity finance and our financial reserves dwindled to almost nothing, so that these essential refurbishments cannot be funded entirely from our own resources.

SALTO is on the cusp of the next exciting phase in our development. Following the appointment of Phil Heathcote, our new Head Coach,  in June, we are set to make positive changes to not only the structure and content of our classes to make them more enjoyable and effective for our gymnasts but under his guidance, we will also improve the quality of the coaching too. We had a fabulous response from our gymnasts inspired by Phil's Commonwealth Games themed classes in August.

Community impact

SALTO operates in Sundon Park which is one of the most deprived wards in the town. This demonstrates the need for SALTO to provide low-cost physical activities. Membership waiting lists are often oversubscribed with waiting times up to 6 months before we can offer places for some age-groups. Additional capacity in the building will contribute to an improvement of in the heath, well-being, and prospects of Luton’s children and young people.  

The SALTO Centre is used by a wide range of community groups, including those supporting children with special needs such as Autism Bedfordshire and Richmond Hill Special Needs School, 210 Brazilian Jujitsu Club. We also host birthday parties available to the whole community. 

We saw a surge in demand following each of the last home games, London, Glasgow and 3 Olympic Games, especially the home games of London 2012. Following the Commonwealth Games gymnastics. Artistic gymnasts competing for the home nations took centre stage, wowing the crowds by winning an incredible haul of 18 medals. Many more winners from other nations too. This success being repeated at the European Championships in Munich only weeks later. SALTO will be ready to respond to the increased demand from the community inspired to get active, especially less represented groups.

Why are we crowdfunding?

After a successful Crowdfunder campaign in 2021, we raised just over £8,000 including GiftAid, from the community, to contribute to our Heat, Light and Air Project, when we installed a COVID-Secure new heat exchange ventilation units and roof-lights to improve the air quality of the SALTO Centre. 

The new multi-sport, expansion and refurbishment project is expected to cost approximately £70,000. To date we have secured £47,000 of grants and pledges from Arnold Clark Foundation, Santa Barbara Heights Foundation, The Wixamtree Charitable Trust, The Clothworkers Foundation and the Postcode Places Trust. Our new Crowdfunding target is £20,000. This is a vital part of the funding mix strategy  that includes Charitable Trusts and Foundations, business sponsorship and own resources to get us over the line with your help.

We are pleased to announce that Sport England have agreed to match fund up to 40% of the amount raised towards our target up to £8,000. This is a fabulous pledge and will help us to reach our £20,000 target.

We recognise that the current cost of living crisis presents particular challenges for the local community and therefore we need to reduce the dependency on financially challenged parents and carers and need the wider community to assist us to reach our target.

This funding will enable SALTO to make the changes that will provide long term benefits for all SALTO Centre users.

How will we spend the funds raised?

This project involves the re-imagining of the existing construction of the SALTO Centre and with some creativity, provide extra usable space.

It is not possible to extend the SALTO Centre, so this is a creative way to reposition an internal fire escape to be located outside the building and in the process create at least an additional 40m2 of usable space. The project will facilitate the reorganisation of SALTO's administration hub and improve security and adapting and refurbishment of the ground floor, its member toilets by adding

improved accessible toilets, changing rooms, building of new staff welfare/first aid and education facilities. More space will be created by re-configuring the room used by the 210 Brazilian Jujitsu Club, community martial arts club, to facilitate growth of their club, enhance their engagement with the local community and further their collaboration with SALTO. This too is expected to create a further 40m2 of usable space.

Donations and Rewards

There are four simple ways to help us reach our target, and make this project a reality.

You can help by:

• Making a donation & selecting Gift Aid if you are a UK Tax Payer
• Purchasing one of our rewards or if you are a local business by donating things we can offer to our supporters. We will give you a shout out!
• Donating a prize to our Charity to be offered as a reward

If you are passionate about sport and improving the quality of our young people’s lives for the future please make a donation and help us spread the word by following our social media and share as far and wide as possible. The more people we reach, the more support we will get.

THANK YOU

We would like to extend a huge thank you to everyone that has supported and continues to support SALTO Gymnastics Charitable Foundation Limited.

The team, our members and users are forever grateful.

This project successfully funded on 18th October 2022