A Wimbledon Business & Charity Win at Team London Awards

Wimbledon Guild pushes the buttons of success with Capsticks Solicitors to win prestigious volunteering award.

One of Merton’s biggest law firms, Capsticks Solicitors LLP (Capsticks), has won a prestigious award for their work with one of the borough’s largest charities, Wimbledon Guild.

 

The annual Team London Awards, run by the Mayor of London’s office, celebrates the individuals, teams and corporate volunteers who make outstanding contributions to their communities. The Awards are one of the ways the Mayor recognises some of those volunteers who go above and beyond to create better local communities.

 

Capsticks won the Team London Awards 2018 Outstanding contribution to volunteering, Capsticks LLP, Business & Corporate Volunteering for the mobile and tablet workshops they have been running over the past three years every Wednesday lunchtime at Wimbledon Guild.  The sessions are aimed at older people who have problems using electronic gadgets and staff from the Wimbledon based legal firm are on hand to troubleshoot and teach customers how to get the most out of their devices.

 

Both organisations are thrilled their hard work has been officially recognised and demonstrates the versatility of corporate volunteering as Wendy Pridmore, Chief Executive, Wimbledon Guild explains:

“We are so proud of the incredible effort put in by both our community engagement team and Capsticks’ Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) group has been recognised by Team London and the Mayor of London’s office.

“One of our organisation’s key aims is to reduce social isolation and loneliness.  By putting on sessions like the mobile and tablet workshops we are helping older people become digitally savvy and able to communicate with friends and family in a more interactive way.  For example, showing someone how to text, take and send pictures on their phone, use Facetime or connect to the internet.  Something that may seem a simple everyday task to many of us can be a huge hurdle to the older generation.”

But it’s not just about older people re-connecting with family and friends, it’s also about building a relationship with local businesses to support charities with volunteers on a regular basis.

Pridmore continues: “ We are always very grateful for any volunteering support but Capsticks have shown that by making a long term commitment to Wimbledon Guild,  they are able to make a significant contribution to our service delivery. The model we have developed with Capsticks is for them to put together a rota of volunteers who give up half an hour of their lunchbreak to attend the workshop.  This gives them flexibility and ensures that volunteering doesn’t rest with the same people each week. It’s been a resounding success and one we have used to engage with other companies wanting to give something back to the local community on a regular basis.”

Commenting on the award, John Tippett-Cooper, senior lawyer and Head of Corporate Social Responsibility, said:

“This Team London Award means so much to us as a company as well as the team that have been involved directly with the mobile and tablet workshops. Our staff get so much out of the volunteering, building relationships with an older generation and really making a difference to them. We have regular attendees to the session as well as those who just come in with a specific problem.  The social inter-generational integration benefits not just the local community but the well-being of our staff too. Those who regularly volunteer look forward to taking the time out of their day to do so and get so much back from it too.”

 

If you are a company or individual interested in volunteering at Wimbledon Guild you can contact their volunteer manager, Adam Butler, abutler@wimbledonguild.co.uk or call him on 020 8946 0735.

If you, or someone you know, is interested in attending the Mobile and Tablet Workshop call 0208 946 0735 or email activities@wimbledonguild.co.uk to book a space.

For more information on Wimbledon Guild and the services they provide to people who live or work in Merton visit: www.wimbledonguild.co.uk

FUTURE WIMBLEDON MASTERPLAN: Merton Council launches consultation

Last Thursday Merton Council launched the NEW proposals for the Wimbledon masterplan at the Wimbledon Community Forum meeting and the full masterplan is now available on their website.

The area covered by the masterplan stretches across the whole Love Wimbledon BID area so we do encourage you to read it.

Merton Council is keen to hear the business voice as well as residents and other stakeholders. The consultation has been extended to 6th January 2019.

READ THE FULL MASTERPLAN HERE (140 pages)

Emerging Priorities on The Masterplan: 

  • Greening Wimbledon
  • Mid-rise contextual architecture
  • Public space
  • Cultural space
  • Traffic intervention
  • Transport interchange
  • Over station development
  • Retail offer

Helen Clark Bell, CEO of Love Wimbledon comments, “Love Wimbledon has been an integral part of the consultation process over the last few years that has led to the development of the masterplan for Wimbledon. Having worked with Merton Council and the Design Council on the initial Design Competition in 2014, it is great to see so many of these initial ideas being brought forward to give Wimbledon town centre a strong vision and aspirations for managed growth over the next few decades.

“We are particularly keen to see the emphasis on greening of the town and improvement of public space to enhance the pedestrian experience as this is paramount in the development of any town. We look forward to hearing the views of local businesses, landowners and other stakeholders during this consultation to ensure that Wimbledon further develops as an attractive town for commerce, which in turn delivers a great place for individuals, either as residents, employees or visitors to enjoy their leisure time.”

Date for your diary 

Love Wimbledon and Merton Council will be organising a business, landlord and agent briefing session to answer questions you may have. We expect this to be in early November and will be in contact again when the details are confirmed.

What is a masterplan?

A masterplan of an area, in this case Wimbledon Town Centre, provides a long term vision for the future development of the area. This stems from understanding how people interact with and use the town, its buildings and its public spaces. It helps to guide development and investment decisions, promoting economic growth and giving clarity to investors, landowners over the quality and scope of proposed development. It provides a structured approach and creates a clear framework for developing an area and delivers strong aspirations for the town for 2030 and beyond.

Visit the FUTURE WIMBLEDON WEBSITE