Van for Giggles Play

Aim

To raise the funds for Giggles Play CIC to purchase a second hand panel van, in order to move its sensory & soft play equipment to venues.

Giggles Play CIC is a non-profit , portable, sensory & soft play centre in Northamptonshire. 

I set up Giggles Play CIC because I was fed up of having nowhere to take my 6 year old son to play. My son, Seth, suffered brain damage at birth. He is visually impaired, has learning difficulties and needs support with all aspects of his life.

As it will be portable I am crowdfunding to raise the money for a second-hand panel van that will be large enough to take all the specialist equipment.

What we're all about...

Giggles Play is a portable non-profit sensory & soft play centre. It is based in Northamptonshire and designed to meet the needs of children with additional needs.

The reason Giggles Play is vital to our community is that standard play centres don’t meet the needs of children who are visually impaired, have no or little mobility or have sensory processing difficulties.

They also don’t provide appropriate disabled changing facilities; a child still in nappies who is too old to fit on a baby changing table usually has to be changed on the floor of public toilets.

The future

The vision of Giggles Play is to improve the wellbeing of both the children and their parents by providing appropriate and safe play outside of the home and the facilities to support the parents, such as a height adjustable changing table and hoist to safely move the child out of their wheelchair onto the changing table or onto play equipment. 

It will be open at weekends and during school holidays; the times when parents most need somewhere to take their child to play. During school hours Giggles Play will be perfect for pre-school aged children, with the low level soft play and the tactile, visual and musical sensory cause and effect play equipment.

I have successfully applied for funding for the play equipment (some of which is pictured below) and plan to open December this year.

Visit us at www.gigglesplay.co.uk 

So why are we crowdfunding?

Giggles Play needs to be portable - it will move to different venues on different days of the week, such as village halls and community centres. There are a number of reasons why it is important that Giggles Play be portable:

• We can bring the play to those that need it the most.

• Some families find it extremely difficult travelling due to the amount of equipment they need to bring, such as oxygen, or because the child gets stressed travelling.

• Allows us to be flexible and responsive to opportunities for Giggles Play to benefit communities, as they arise.

• Allows families or groups to choose their own venue and book Giggles Play to come to it.

We need to raise the money to purchase a vehicle, rather than purchasing through HP or renting, because we need to keep our outgoings as low as possible to make the entry and booking price accessible for all.

We couldn't do this without the support of Chris Denham from Denham Hedley Commercials who is supplying the van and Mark Taylor from happyhappyhappy.co.uk who is providing free signwriting.

Testimonials

"Just because a child has special needs they should be able to have a soft play area where they can have fun and play like mainstream children. They are no different and enjoy playing." 

"It can be quite heartbreaking as a parent watching your child trying to play..we struggle everyday, we shouldn't have to struggle with that."

"Giggles Play will be smaller, accessible and will provide the relevant stimulating and safe play activities that my son requires."

Rewards

Please read the different pledge levels on offer, there is something for everyone!

If you click on the pledge button at the top of the page, you can select your reward level but also increase the amount you pledge.

The No Frills Pledge

You don't want anything, you just want to support the project. Minimum pledge is £5.

The Supporter Pledge

If you pledge £10 we will send you an email thanking you for your support.

When you select this, you will then get the option to increase this amount if you wish.

The Prize Draw Pledge

If you pledge at least £15, you will receive a photo of the van you helped to buy. You will also be put into a draw to win private use of Giggles Play for you, or a group (up to 10 children) for one hour.

Please note, if you win you will have to arrange and book (and pay for) the venue. The prize is only for the equipment which will be brought to you and supervised by a member of Giggles Play staff. You will be responsible for the children during the time they are using Giggles Play equipment.

If you win, the prize will have a time limit of 12 months from when it is presented to you.

It can be gifted to someone else.

The Free Pass Pledge (limited to 70)

If you pledge at least £20 you will receive one free pass to a Giggles Play session.

The pass will be valid for 12 months and will allow one family free admission to one play session (1 hour) during normal opening hours.

The pass can be gifted onto someone else.

In addition, you will also receive an invitation to a free, exclusive, preview event for you and your children to come and play before Giggles Play officially opens.

This event is likely to be end November/early December 2014 on a Saturday or Sunday.

The My Face on Your Van pledge (limited to 63)

If you pledge at least £30 your photo (or name if you're shy) will be sign written onto a panel especially set aside on the van for this purpose. The size of the image will be approximately 110 x 90mm (double the size of a business card). 

We will contact you when the project is successfully funded to obtain the file.

We'll then send you a photo of the van with your face (or name) beaming back at you.

If you click on the big pledge button at the top of the page, you can increase your pledge!

The My Face on Your Van pledge version 2 (limited to 20)

If you pledge at least £40 you can choose where your photo/name is displayed on the van.

The size of the image will be approximately 110 x 90mm (double the size of a business card). 

We will contact you when the project is successfully funded and get the necessary info.

We'll then send you a photo of the van with your face (or name) beaming back at you.

The Special Giggler Pledge (limited to 50)

If you pledge at least £50, you will receive a special Giggles 'Giggler' supporter card granting unlimited, half price admission for one child for a year (normal entry price for one play session £5). 

The card can be gifted onto someone else and we will contact you when the project is successfully funded to ask the child's name.

In addition, you will be put into the prize draw to win private use of Giggles Play for you, or a group (up to 10 children) for one hour.

Please note, if you win you will have to arrange and book (and pay for) the venue. The prize is only for the equipment which will be brought to you and supervised by a member of Giggles Play staff. You will be responsible for the children during the time they are using Giggles Play equipment.

If you win, the prize will have a time limit of 12 months from when it is presented to you.

It can be gifted to someone else.

The Free for a Year Pledge (limited to 25)

If you pledge at least £60, you will receive free entry to a standard play session for one child once a month for 12 months (normal entry price for one play session £5).

The card can be gifted onto someone else and we will contact you when the project is successfully funded to ask the child's name.

The Private Party Pledge (limited to 10)

If you pledge at least £80 you will get private use of Giggles Play for you, or a group (up to 10 children) for one hour.

Please note, you will have to arrange and book (and pay for) the venue. The prize is only for the equipment which will be brought to you and supervised by a member of Giggles Play staff. You will be responsible for the children during the time they are using Giggles Play equipment.

It will have a time limit of 12 months from when it is presented to you.

It can be gifted to someone else.

The Company Sponsorship Pledge (limited to 63)

This pledge level is for companies who wish to show their support. If you pledge at least £200 you can add your company logo to the van. It will be sign written onto a panel especially set aside on the van for this purpose.

The size of the image will be approximately 110 x 90mm (double the size of a business card). 

In addition, you will be named a supporter on a Corporate Sponsor page of the Giggles Play website.

We will contact you when the project is successfully funded to obtain the file.

We'll then send you a photo of the van displaying your logo.

If you click on the big pledge button at the top of the page you can increase your pledge!

The Company Sponsorship Pledge version 2 (limited to 20)

If you pledge at least £300 you can choose where your company logo is displayed on the van. The image will be sized to fit within the chosen space, up to a maximum of 300mm.

In addition, you will be named a supporter on a Corporate Sponsor page of the Giggles Play website.

We will contact you when the project is successfully funded and get the necessary info.

We'll then send you a photo of the van displaying your logo.

If you click on the big pledge button at the of the page you can increase your pledge!

The If You Build it We Will Come Pledge (limited to 2)

This pledge level is for groups of families who want to book Giggles Play for their village/community.

If you pledge £500 Giggles Play will come to your local community centre/village hall or alternative suitable venue once a month for 6 months, at a time of your choosing. This can be in the evening, or during the day.

If this clashes with bookings already made then there will need to be some negotiation!

The venue must be within 40 miles of the postcode NN7 1BA and it will be your responsibility to ensure that the chosen venue has availability for the time required. Giggles Play will then book and pay for the venue. Admission will then be chargeable at normal rate. 

The Generous Organisation Pledge (no limit!)

What can I say! If you pledge £500 we will add your company logo to the van (wherever you want), add your details to our website but will also go on on and on about your generosity, linking through to your website.

This project closed unsuccessfully on 27th October 2014