AUGUST has been an important month for a Radstock charity which has been celebrating friendship and vital donations to support its services.

It has been ‘Friendship Month’ for SWALLOW Charity, based at Westfield, which supports local teenagers and adults with learning disabilities. 

The charity gave away their special chocolate brownies and welcomed Friends to the SWALLOW Community Café in Radstock on August 21. 

The guests listened to the SWALLOW choir singing songs including With a little help from my Friends. Organisers described the day as a “lovely” event where they were lucky enough to receive two cheques, one for £300 from Sun Chemicals and one for £1,000 from Somer Valley Rotary.

At the Hive café in Peasedown St John, chocolate brownie bites were on offer and throughout the charity the importance of friendship was celebrated. 

Nicky Tew, fundraising and finance manager at SWALLOW, said: “Friends are very important to SWALLOW, and it was lovely to be able to celebrate the power of Friendship”

SWALLOW relies on its ‘Friends of SWALLOW’ to help the charity to achieve this aim, by making regular donations that support activities that boost friendship and wellbeing. 

The charity was established in 1993 and over the years it has developed its services in response to the wishes of our members. 

Its website states it is also delighted to have John Cullum as its patron, and he has been supporting SWALLOW since March 2018. 

John Cullum has a wealth of experience, both in the commercial and voluntary sectors.  John is a Deputy Lieutenant of Somerset and supports a range of local organisations. 

John said: “I am very inspired by the caring and respectful support provided by dedicated staff and volunteers, enabling greater independent living and quality of life for young people and adults in our area. Hopefully, I can help build both financial and voluntary support for SWALLOW to meet the demand for these growing needs in our community.”

A wide range of activities are organised and held at a number of charity venues, including its main office, its community cafes in Radstock and Peasedown St John, the Bath Percy Community Centre on Bath, Orchard Hall in Midsomer Norton, and Chilcompton Village Hall.

Anybody who would like to make a difference to the lives of local people by becoming a Friend of SWALLOW, please get in touch with Nicky Tew on [email protected] or visit the charity’s website at https://www.swallowcharity.org/friends.