The Lodge of Dawn No 6511, Leeds have secured a grant of £28,000 from West Riding Masonic Charities Ltd on behalf of John Jamieson School, part of The East Specialist Inclusive Learning Centre (SILC) in Oakwood, North Leeds. The SILC is one of the largest specialist settings in the North of England.
The £28,000 grant will help to establish an ‘Employment Park’ which will give students the opportunity to learn real skills in a safe environment. The facility will be built in the school’s current Millennium Garden, where a garage, currently used as a storage space, will be turned into a workshop that allows students to make commercial grade goods to sell.
Jamie Darby, Interim Assistant Headteacher at John Jamieson said, “We are so pleased to have been successful with being awarded this grant. We are going to use the funding to create a small employment park in the school grounds where students of all ages will have a shop and café that they can run as well as visit. This will really give our learners the chance to develop real life skills which they will be able to use in the wider world. I believe that some of our students will have a greater chance of employment if they can develop these skills from an early stage. We would not be able to do this without the grant we have received”.
The Lodge of Dawn spokesperson said, “we are absolutely delighted to be able to support such a fantastic project, that will make such a positive difference to so many deserving children’s lives. Two of the key tenets of Freemasonry are charitable giving, and supporting the community. We are proud to be doing both right here in North Leeds where we are based.”
The East SILC John Jamieson is a through generic special school. Pupils join the school with a wide range of challenges in their lives., including children with moderate learning difficulties, severe learning difficulties, complex medical needs, physical difficulties, Downs Syndrome, hearing and/or visual impairments and Autism.
The school’s ethos is to provide a secure, caring and supportive environment where pupils are encouraged to fulfil their potential and thrive, academically, emotionally and physically.
The Lodge of Dawn £28,000 grant was announced simultaneously with another grant also sponsored by The Lodge of Dawn, of £20,000, for St Chad’s Broomfield Cricket Club, in Headingley, which will go towards a new cricket pavillion.
These two major grants follow the £24,800 last year to the Chapeltown Youth Development Centre for a new all-weather 5 a side pitch.
You can find out more about John Jamieson School here.
Charitable giving is a key part of masonic life. You can read more about The Lodge of Dawn’s charitable activity here.
If you are a Leeds-based charity and are interested in applying for a grant, please see our simple guide here.
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