The 125 Fund was established last year to help students to reach their true potential. Each year, students across the University are invited to apply for a grant of between £150 and £1,500 for projects or activities that will enable them to learn new skills and have new experiences that will support them in their life after University.
Quintin Hogg, our philanthropist founder, believed in widening participation and providing an education for all, regardless of background or social status. With 96% of our students coming from state schools, this ethos is very much alive today and our focus continues to be on helping students with their personal and professional development.
Thanks to the generous support of our alumni and friends, 92 students received a grant in March this year. Our students demonstrated their creative, entrepreneurial and inventive spirit in the breadth and variety of projects that we received applications for. A play about human trafficking, research into tackling anaemia, fieldwork in a refugee camp, eco-friendly fashion, a single parent dating app and a project to fight malnutrition in Ghana have all received funding.
Sasha Pinnock, Fashion Business Management MA, used her grant to start a unique business making fashionable safety jackets with an optional tracker for school children. Sasha said: “The grant has helped me to produce prototypes and professional promotional materials to take the project further. It has allowed me to hire and identify the right market to sell the safety jackets, but more than that, it has given me the confidence to believe in the project and to create something that not only makes profit but will also make a real difference in young children’s lives and help parents keep their children safe.
“I would like to say a huge thank you to everyone who donated to The 125 Fund for making a huge difference within my life and for truly believing in me when others did not. You have given me the necessary tools to turn a concept into a reality.”
The Quintin Hogg Trust has generously pledged to match all donations made to The 125 Fund up until July 2018. Every donation will be matched pound for pound so this is a fantastic opportunity for alumni and friends of the University to make a real difference to the lives of our current students.
Our team of student callers will be reaching out to alumni during our annual Telephone Campaign in November to seek their support and invite them to join others who have already donated to The 125 Fund.
Please help us take advantage of the Quintin Hogg Trust’s unique matched funding offer before it’s too late by supporting The 125 Fund today.
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