TRUSTEES of the Hadfield Trust travelled from as far as London and Liverpool to see how work is progressing on the National Sunbeams Music Centre at Redhills, Penrith.
The centre is the marvellous achievement of the Annie Mawson’s Sunbeams Music Trust, which is determined to provide a therapeutic music centre to help transform the lives of disabled people of all ages through the power of music.
The Hadfield Trust has funded community groups across Cumbria since 1998 to deliver projects that really make a difference. Usually awards are limited to £5,000 but trustees were so impressed by the work of the Sunbeams Music Trust that they have donated £100,000 towards the cost of the building and its running costs during its first three years of operation.
Caroline Addison, of Kings Meaburn, who administers the trust, has been a trustee for five years. She said: “The Hadfield Trust is delighted to support the truly awe-inspiring work of Annie Mawson and her dedicated team at the Sunbeams Music Trust.
“The scale of their achievement in raising over £2.2 million to realise their dream of providing a world class music therapy centre based in Cumbria is exceptional.
“As a charitable trust we are particularly interested in projects that support the arts, the environment, young people, the elderly and social needs. The Sunbeams Music Trust manages to support all of these priorities in its work.”
Roy Morris, the chairman of trustees, said: “Since its creation, the Hadfield Trust has distributed over £4 million of funding to charitable organisations across Cumbria.
“The lady who endowed the Hadfield Trust had a great love for Cumbria and its communities and also for the arts. She would have been delighted to see how these are nurtured to such great effect by the Sunbeams Music Centre.”
The Hadfield Trust has three rounds of funding each year. Awards have just been announced for the summer round of applications and they included £10,000 to the Bendrigg Trust, Kendal, for new disabled accommodation; £3,616 to Penrith mountain rescue team for new equipment; £3,300 to Theatre by the Lake, Keswick, for dementia support sessions; £2,000 to Penrith and District Red Squirrel Group; and £1,200 to Threlkeld Young People.
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