The Inspirational Young Stars 2024

The 2024 Inspirational Young stars awards again showed what amazing children we have in Cambridgeshire and CCFR are grateful to the Cambridge Independent News Paper for partnering us on this journey.

Special thanks also to all the sponsors who without their support this event would not happen.

Regent Construction,
Mick George Ltd,
A R Aspinall & sons,
Cambridgeshire Football Association,
Cambridge United Lottery,
Mead Plant & Grab,
Coel, Camclad Ltd,
Premier Travel,
Baxter Storey,
Tesco,
Coopers Trophies,
Rocket,
C B Groundworks
Cambridge United FC,

Details for the 2025 awards will be published shortly and we urge families to nominate the next Inspirational Young Stars.

Time to reflect on 2024 and what a busy year it has been. Part 1

CCFR agreed to continue supporting Cambridge United Football club by supplying sanitary products from Tesco in all the ladies toilets at no cost to the club which we know has been very well used by ladies attending fixtures at the Cledara Abbey stadium and without the support of store Manager Ian Westwood and community champion Julie Izzard it would not have been possible. This arrangement will now continue into 2025

The work supporting mental health has continued and becomes more in demand than ever and I had no hesitation in working with CPSL Mind when I agreed to walk 600 miles the distance of London to Berlin to fit in with the football European championship finals. The walk was two-fold firstly to generate funds for CPSL Mind to continue the work supporting the public and secondly to highlight the importance of conversation around mental health and secondly the walk also raised just short of 10K so thanks to all the companies and individuals who donated to walk.

The walk also generated conversations with close friends who offered a further challenge? My good friend Kevin Johnson from C B Groundworks suggested THE BIG FISH OFF with funds raised being used to support the CPSL walk.

Rookery Waters at Pidley very kindly agreed to let us use Magpie Lake for the day.
 
The event generated a lot of media interest, I needed to catch 200lb of fish in 10 hours to bag around 2k of funding, The practice event went well and I managed to net 250lb of fish but then of the day of the BIG FISH OFF things changed? On arrival at the lake it was clear to see that the fish had started spawning and not interested in feeding.  The event got off to a slow start but as conditions started to improve so did the fishing and we bagged 204lb of fish. Very special thanks to the Kevin Johnson and all the other sponsors.

Cambridge Charity Fund Raisers fishing event in aid of Cambridge United Lottery
 
We would like to thank the sponsors of this event.
A R Aspinall & Sons
Coopers Trophies
Herringbone Restoration Ltd
Tesco Newmarket Road
 
The event is run to enable CCFR to purchase 4 lottery tickets to support the Cambridge United Lottery who have been loyal supporters of CCFR for a number of years. The 4 lottery tickets give CCFR the chance of winning a £2.500 prize which would be used to help local charities.

Individual winner on the day was Tim Cooper with 204lb.11oz
Runner up was Dudley Seal 141lb 12oz
Third Gary Chandler 82lb 10oz

Pairs winners were Tim cooper & Dick Smith
Pairs Runner up were Gary Chandler & Ian Darler

Cambridge Charity Fund Raisers are pleased to announce that they will be supporting Little Buds / Happy Mama for the next 12 months . CCFR will be raising funds to purchase sensory toys and other items to support the the children who attend Little Buds.

Thank you from CPSL Mind
Ian hopes that the completion of his walking challenge will prompt companies and individuals to start the discussion about mental health in their workplaces and homes, a hope shared by CPSL Mind’s Fundraising and Communications Manager Gary Sutcliffe.

“We are so grateful to Ian for everything that he has achieved over the last few months. His sheer determination and commitment to support CPSL Mind and to support his local community continues to astound us and we can’t express our thanks and gratitude enough for all his hard work.” said Gary.


Read more via the link here
lmind.org.uk/ian-darler-walking-challenge-for-mental-health/

If you would like to support Ian’s walk please visit his just giving page.

Visit the CPSL Mind fundraising page to start your fundraising journey with CPSL Mind.

London to Berlin  walk , Diary week commencing 1st June 2024

The walk is progressing and 468 miles have been completed leaving 210 miles to go before the 14th July. Read more below the photo of those taking part in the public walk

Photo courtesy of CPSL Mind
 
The public walk on Sunday 26th May went well with 20 people in total on the walk. We started at the Cledara Abbey Stadium and walked along the Chisholm trail to the river Cam from there we made our way to the village of Horningsea and the church before returning to the Stadium.
The walk was led by good friend Trevor George who used to be the local police officer for that area some years ago. We set off with the sun shining but by the time we reached Horningsea the heavens opened and we all had a soaking despite sheltering in the hedge rows.

Luckily the rain did not dampen anyone’s spirits and the conversations were flowing amongst us all.  People were very honest and it was inspiring to hear how many of us go to great lengths supporting family, friends and loved ones, but to also fully appreciate how draining this can be for those people.

Every time CCFR have been involved with a mental health fund raising project we have had several public walks for each event and it has provided an opportunity for those attending to speak about mental health openly.  This was again the case on Sunday with those who joined me on the walk and I believe this is a very positive thing.
 
The donations have again continued to come in with the total now at £3,000 and I would like to say ‘Thank You’ to each and every person for their support and in many cases their very kind words they have left alongside the donation as I know how personal some of these messages are and it really does mean a lot, I found some to be quite emotional.

The BIG FISH OFF was mentioned in my previous diary and on the radio show with Kev Lawence at Radio Cambridgeshire.  It has really taken off with all the media coverage, which in turn has generated a number of pledges from several companies.

Thanks to the companies below for the BIG Fish Off sponsorship.

C B Groundworks, Kevin Johnson
A.R.Aspinall & Son, Andrew Aspinall & Terry Carman
D.C Carpets, David Coughlin
Rocketworld.Co.UK, Gary Ingerson

I really do now feel under pressure to catch a good net of fish as quite simply I know every pound of fish will generate more funds and help CPSL Mind to deliver a mental health service within the community.

Whilst talking about the BIG FISH OFF I must also say a special thanks to Freddie Sandford from the Angling Times who has very kindly agreed to mention the BIG FISH OFF in the support of CPSL MIND within the paper and on social media.

Walking, exercise, and fishing are a great way to help improve your mood and mental health so it feels fitting that the fishing challenge will increase donations to the total money raised from the walk.  There will be a separate diary on the BIG FISH OFF once the event has taken place.

Further support has come in this week from The Grounds management Association (GMA) who have very kindly agreed to cover the walk with a Q & A plus a possible offer of the story in the form of an editorial later in the year. Thanks to Karen Maxwell for her support with this and all at the GMA.

Peter Houghton at the Football Safety Officers Association is another person who has worked very hard around the topic of mental health and has kindly invited me twice in the past to speak at the FSOA conference.  Peter has agreed to support the walk through the association and also very kindly agreed to donate some sporting memorabilia with authenticity for a future event with authenticity for a future event where the money raised will be donated to CPSL Mind.

So, what is next in the coming days?

Its still very busy, hopefully not too much work in the office and meetings at the Cledara Abbey stadium in the next couple of weeks as I really do need to churn out the steps whilst working on the pitch with the pedestrian machines in the coming weeks.

A practice session on the lake where the BIG FISH OFF will take place has been arranged.
Radio Interview with Heart Radio/LBC this coming week.

Working on the final stages of the Inspirational Young Stars awards evening which is partnered with the Cambridge Independent Newspaper.

Promoting the London to Berlin walk in the hope we can gain further media coverage.

Finally, a few special ‘Thank You’s’

All the media team at Cambridge United F.C for their continued support over past weeks.
To every person who has donated since the walk started and all the media groups and radio stations that have promoted the walk in support of CPSL Mind and mental health.

It is worth mentioning that CCFR has been supporting various charities for the past 20 years and in all that time I have never received the support that I have for the London – Berlin walk campaign. The support and engagement from Gary Sutcliffe and Olivia Hubbard has been simply outstanding with their hard work in generating media interest and with the communication they have offered.

CCFR normally only work with a charity for one year but last week I asked both of them a question?

The question was are you okay if we are in this for the long-haul as for the first time in CCFR history I feel I should continue working with the charity for the following year as I can see the enormous difference CPSL Mind makes to people’s lives. You can see from the information below what the London-Berlin walk helps support.
 
Cambridgeshire, Peterborough, and South Lincolnshire Mind (CPSL Mind) is a values-based, regional charity that supports local people in their recovery from mental health challenges, promotes wellbeing and campaigns against stigma and discrimination.

1.   Please feel free to refer people to the ‘Wellbeing Wheel’ on CPSL Mind’s website, which has four segments to best suit a person’s current mental health needs: Not Coping, Recovering, Supporting Others and Staying Well. By clicking on each segment, it will signpost individuals to advice on the CPSL website and supporting organisations.

2.      People can also call the CPSL Mind info line on 0300 303 4363 and the team will be able to signpost to relevant support.

3.      Please refer people to the STOP Suicide website: this is an award-winning suicide prevention campaign that seeks to empower communities and individuals across Cambridgeshire and Peterborough to help stop suicides by being alert to the warning signs, asking directly about suicide and helping those who are feeling suicidal to stay safe. It is led by the charity Cambridgeshire, Peterborough and South Lincolnshire Mind (CPSL Mind) and supported by local NHS and Public Health teams. Visit https://stopsuicidepledge.org/

4.      If individuals are experiencing an emotional or mental health crisis, there are people who can help. In the first instance, contact your GP or call the NHS 111 service and select the mental health option to speak to a mental health professional. 

5.      CPSL Mind has a Sanctuary service in Cambridge and Peterborough, which provide safe spaces for individuals referred via the NHS First Response Service. 

6.      In an emergency, please dial 999.

7.      The Good Life Service offers a range of accessible options for community-based wellbeing support and connection throughout Cambridgeshire and Peterborough. This includes weekly Good Mood Cafes and Open-Door calm spaces, online wellbeing support and more.

Thanks again to everybody for the support.
Ian Darler B.E.M

See the slideshows for the steps taken on route to Berlin during April and May