I have been involved in some major projects in the not for profit and voluntary sector through both my professional and personal interests. I am proud to have been able to contribute to the following projects, which have given me knowledge and skills which I can now share.
Nomansland Community Clubhouse
Over the course of 4 years I worked with the Nomansland Sports Association, a charity operating the recreation ground, to design, fundraise and build a £540k sports clubhouse facility. Opening in June 2016, I arranged the funding of this project from a number of government and charity bodies including Sport England (National Lottery), the Football Foundation, several Landfill Community Funds, Wiltshire Council, New Forest District Council and the Parish Council, along with sponsorship and funds raised in the local community and businesses.
Having been a member of the charity committee for a number of years prior to this project commencing, I was aware of the need to keep running costs to a minimum so I specified a highly sustainable building design criteria. The use of natural lighting, solar power, automatic occupation sensors, heat recovery and a highly insulated construction meant that the energy consumption of the building has not become a burden on the charity during use and operation.
Challenging and incompatible timescales, design criteria, funding requirements and payment terms and conditions between each of the funding partners and the project delivery schedule had to be overcome in order to deliver this project. The completed building has become a great asset to the local community and has continued to meet the needs of the large number of stakeholders well throughout the growing use of the facilities.
Scout Movement
I have been an Explorer Scout Leader leading a group of 14 to 18 year old Explorer Scouts with weekly meetings involving scouting activities along with numerous events such as paintballing and camps. I have also been a member of the group executive involved in fundraising and the general running and maintenance of the scout hut. I continue to provide occasional activities and events.
Professional Commitment
As part of my professional commitment as a Civil Engineer I have encouraged children and young people to take an interest in a career in Civil Engineering by giving tours of the Port of Southampton in my spare time. I have taken several groups on 3 or 4 hour tours of the port with ages ranging from year 7 through to year 11 school leavers to the Graduate, Student and Apprentice local ICE Committee members.