tangents.

Image Source: Dr Iain M Hambling, T.G.Green & Co Ltd Pottery – Church Gresley Archives One of my passions is saving local heritage. Being from the area of Swadlincote T.G. Green pottery was and still is revered by many a local. The factory closed its doors in 2007 after 143 years of business and has remained vacant ever since. It was put on the Heritage at Risk register in 2008 for its four bottle kilns that date back to the 18th and 19th centuries. I have been working with

Whilst researching and fact checking for our new Brailsford Project, I went down a fascinating little rabbit hole into the life of Lionel Guy Gisborne. We were attempting to find records of his activities around 1921to see if he had a connection with the construction of Field Head House in Brailsford. I ended up following his life through wars, marriage, tragic accidents and philanthropic acts. Lionel Guy Gisborne was born in 1866 in New Zealand (likely in Wellington). His fa

Like many children I got involved in the usual school orientated fundraising activities as a child. Things like Red Nose Day and Children in Need but on occasion I initiated my own things such as organising a mini jumble sale in aid of victims of a recent flood in Bangladesh. These activities were born of an 'organising' streak in me which later manifested itself as a skill for professional Project Management. Camphill School, Otse, Botswana I have to admit my charitable wor

One of my earliest lessons in fundraising was that a) there is an awful lot of money out there and b) most people have something they can give to charities of their own choosing. The conclusion I have drawn from this is that it’s all about matching the right cause with the right person or business. How you go about doing this is a bit more tricky; Basically I’ve concluded this type of fundraising (individual giving and corporate relationships) is down to personal connections