A new minibus has been donated to the Jeanne Saunders Centre – an ‘outstanding’ specialist pre-school centre for children with special education needs and disabilities run by Brighton & Hove City Council.
The minibus has been generously donated by Variety Golf a children’s charity. The bus was purchased through Variety, the children’s charity sunshine coaches programme and part-fund by the council. Sunshine coaches are donated to schools and care centres for disabled and disadvantaged children.
Manager of the Jeanne Saunders Centre, Anne Rhodda, said: “We really are very grateful to Variety Golf and the council for the new minibus.
“The children who come to our centre travel from all over the city and some families need help getting here if they live far away or have siblings who they need to take to school. The new minibus is replacing an old one which had broken down and was not repairable.”
Jeanne Saunders driver Glenn Tyler and centre manager Anna Rhodda were presented with the minibus on Thursday 15 April by Jimmy Tarbuck, Variety Golf President, Captain and former Strictly Come Dancing Judge Len Goodman, and Jamie Little, Director of Variety Golf at the Croham Hurst Golf Club.
Jamie Little, Director of Variety Golf, said: “On behalf of Variety Golf and all our members, we are delighted to support the Jeanne Saunders Centre with a brand new Variety Sunshine Coach to help transport their students around in style.
"This will hopefully put some smiles on the children’s faces which makes it all worthwhile and as our strap-line on our Variety Sunshine Coaches says “A million miles of smiles!"
Manager Anne added: “We need a minibus to ensure that all eligible children can attend our centre and no-one is excluded due to lack of transport. We will also be using the bus for trips as well to broaden our children’s learning experiences.
“We also hope to use it to offer trips for our parents and children together. Many families can struggle to get out as their children’s needs can be challenging. A crucial part of our work is supporting families so we hope that the bus can add to this.”
Georgina Clarke Green, the council’s Assistant Director of health, SEN & disabilities, said: “The Jeanne Saunders Centre does an amazing job to support children and their families. We are delighted that Variety Golf has donated the minibus and that the council was able to contribute to the funding.”
