A WHEELCHAIR access project for Prestwick Beach was awarded funding at the recent Prestwick Decision Day.

The charity, Community Gift Aid, received £1,000 after winning the support from the public at the event on Saturday, November 25 at Heathfield Primary.

The project ‘Prestwick Beach Wheels’ will be using the funding to enable children and adults with limited mobility to enjoy the beach front in the town and it would also help the charity engage volunteers and trainees to help build and test out their first chair.

Ayr Advertiser:

Community Gift Aid hope to launch their project by the Spring next year.
Speaking to the Ayr Advertiser, Alan Priestnall, the Co-ordinator for Community Gift Aid, said: “We are really thrilled that we have had the public support and we hope to gather a team of volunteers to help make our own wheelchairs.

“We hope that we can also include people to help us build them and aim to build a low-cost wheelchair and have up and running by, hopefully, spring break 2018 and onwards.

“We will be partnering up with the Putting Plus Community Interest Company who run the putting green at Prestwick Golf Club who will allow us to keep the wheel chair in their stores when it is not being used – then it will be available for families to go along to use on the beach.

“If it goes well, we hope to find customers out with Prestwick, for example at Rozelle to increase access to the great outdoors.”

Mr Priestnall explained that the charity is also thinking about showing their design to overseas agencies in the hope that the design can be taken to developing countries.

He added: “We hope that it will be fun for those who use the wheel chairs and that it brings joy to those who use it the seafront.”

If anyone would like to volunteer with the ‘Prestwick Beach Wheels’ project, you can go to Community Gift Aid website http://communitygiftexchange.com/ and send a form in the ‘Contact Us’ section to Mr Priestnall.