2024 is fast approaching its conclusion and not only does that mean it’s time for turkey, pigs in blankets and Hugh Grant portraying a Prime Minister we can only dream of, but also time that I look back on the Jacob Billington Trust’s work over the last 12 months.
This year marks our second full year as a registered charity, and I’m delighted with how far we have progressed in that relatively short space of time. I have summarised some of the key points of our progress below.
In 2024 we:
Doubled our provision for discounted music lessons from 80 students to more than 160 across our three providers – Harmonics Music, Scrapyard Studios & In Another Place. https://www.jacobbillingtontrust.com/referastudent
Hosted monthly Songwriters & Storytellers sessions at Bramble Berries Coffee Shop and arranged multiple gigs and performance opportunities for the artists involved. https://www.jacobbillingtontrust.com/songwriters-storytellers
Arranged creative workshops for local artists around vocal health and creative writing/songwriting. https://tinyurl.com/yvveanb5
Fully funded multiple taster sessions for more than 90 young people to ‘try their hand’ at keyboard, ukulele and guitar for the very first time. https://tinyurl.com/5y94madm
Increased our annual Plaza Cinema tickets giveaway from 130 tickets to over 320 so that 80+ families can access our local community cinema for free this Christmas. https://www.jacobbillingtontrust.com/post/jbt-to-give-out-80-family-tickets-for-plaza-cinema
Fully funded 3 places on a ‘first-class’ songwriting course through our links with SAE. https://www.jacobbillingtontrust.com/post/jbt-funding-summer-school-course
Started a new link with Bookshop Studios to provide discounted rehearsal sessions for local artists under the age of 25. https://www.jacobbillingtontrust.com/post/jbt-x-bookshop-studios
Provided staging and multiple local acts for the 2024 Crosby Christmas Light Switch On. https://www.jacobbillingtontrust.com/post/crosby-light-switch-on-2024
In 2024, we invested over £7,000 into supporting the young people of Sefton and its surrounding areas with creative arts opportunities. The Trustees and our wider JBT team have worked tirelessly to ensure that every penny is spent wisely. We’ll be publishing our 2024 financial report to the Charity Commission by March 2025, which will be made publicly available.
Since we set up the charity, we have been consistently in awe of the generosity shown by the JBT community and 2024 was no exception to this.
To everyone who has fundraised on our behalf, made a donation or, just as importantly, offered up their hard work and time so we can continue to carry out this work that we believe is so important - a huge thank you.
It is due to the exceptional generosity of those who support the Trust that we can confirm our intention to once again double the number of discounted music lessons that we currently offer, provide our Songwriters & Storytellers artists with a broader range of workshops and experiences and, overall, double our investment in the Creative Arts through our own projects and community partnerships.
Our Operations Lead, Daniel Taylor, has been hard at work making it easier for our community to support us with donations. Through our website, it is now possible to not only make a one-off-donation, but you can also set up monthly direct debit payments.
If you would be interested in either of these options to support us through 2025 and beyond, you can find more information here
As Chair, I would like to express my gratitude to our trustees - Danny, John, Oliver, Adam, Abbie and Sam M, for their continued dedication and hard work in making sure our projects, events and important admin tasks are carried out to the highest standard of quality and accountability. It is thanks to their efforts that the Trust has succeeded not only up to now but is set up to do so for many years to come.
With Jacob’s birthday so close to Christmas, we have some brilliant memories of him at this time of year. We have established the Trust in a way that celebrates Jacob’s life, by supporting and making a positive difference to the lives of Sefton’s young people as they explore their path in the creative arts, a path that Jacob very much made his own.
I hope that with our ambitious targets for next year, 2025 will prove to be a key milestone in the growth of the JBT.
From all of us at the Jacob Billington Trust, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.
Sam D’Auvin
Chair of Trustees
Jacob Billington Trust
We are fully committed to maintaining the JBT’s financial sustainability, so that means we will be combining our usual fundraising efforts with grant funding applications; an avenue we have only lightly explored up to this point. If you would be interested in supporting us with our fundraising, either through your own fundraising venture or through helping us secure grant funding, please email me at sam@jacobbillingtontrust.com
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