The festival’s charity for 2019 is the Guide Dogs Association. Please give generously either in the form of your leftover beer vouchers or good old hard cash!
The Association’s ambition is a future where every person with sight loss has the confidence and support they need to live their lives to the full. Their website explains how they aim to reach and support many more individuals, from 200,000 people today, to 500,000 by 2023.
The problems we are here to solve: Despite the devastation caused by sight loss, 70% of adults receive no support within the first 12 months of diagnosis, and are likely to encounter poor education, high unemployment, depression, loneliness and financial insecurity throughout their lifetime. The rise in the UK’s elderly population continues to impact social care. With shortages in funding, local authorities have prioritised the services they provide, leaving the third sector under great pressure to plug gaps.
Childhood sight loss is on the increase. There are around 35,000 children and young people living with a vision impairment in the UK. Some 80% of a child’s learning takes place using vision and every day they go without support can affect their development.
Yet we know that the public does not find our charitable cause as engaging as other causes; people fail to relate to the issue and consequently we need to work much harder to build emotional connections with the public. The majority of individuals with sight loss are likely to encounter high unemployment, depression, loneliness and financial insecurity throughout their lifetime.
To more than double the number of people supported by 2023 is a substantial challenge; your donations will make a world of difference:
- £8 will feed a guide dog puppy for 10 days
- £25 will buy a reflective white dog harness
- £50 would pay for a fun activity for a visually impaired child
- £2500 enables you to name a puppy guide dog
- £55,000 is the life time cost of a guide dog
You can donate at the festival or via our Facebook page. If you want o know more, please ask the Association’s representatives at the festival or click the logo above to go to their website.