The Gold-i Fund for Innovation has awarded a £2,000 grant to the Tech Cauldron Club which helps children and young people in Ashtead and Leatherhead to learn about STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) in workshops and after school clubs. The funding will be used to purchase educational STEM toys, games and products for a loaning system for club members. It will also fund a team to enter the IET First Lego League competition next year. The club plans to allocate some of the funds towards purchasing advanced equipment including a 3D printer to enrich members’ tech learning experience.
The Tech Cauldron Club (TCC) is a not-for-profit organisation which promotes technology learning in the local community in an affordable way. It was founded in January 2016 by a group of parents who were passionate about technology and had children who wished to learn more than schools could offer. TCC runs extra-curricular clubs for 8-15 years olds, covering a range of activities including electronics, inventing, science, crafting and coding. Current clubs are at Greville Primary School, Ashtead Scout Hut and West Ashtead Primary School. The TCC hopes to expand into a number of local secondary schools.
Venus Shum, Founder of the Tech Cauldron Club explains
Tech Cauldron was set up to give parents a low-cost option to get their children involved in STEM learning and, to be more in touch with the physical technological world, rather than the virtual world. The clubs are proving to be very popular and are really gaining momentum. We are so thankful to the Gold-i Fund for supporting us – this is the first grant we have ever received and it will be invaluable in providing resources to help the young people in our clubs to learn about technology appropriately.
Tom Higgins, CEO, Gold-i added,
A lot of parents know that their children are interested in technology but they do not know how to encourage and cultivate this interest. The Tech Cauldron is an inspiring initiative which encourages children to take STEM subjects more seriously in a fun and motivating way. We are delighted to support them with a grant from the Gold-i Fund.
As a prominent Surrey tech-based company which regularly recruits technology specialists from within our community, we place a high value on the skills which the Tech Cauldron Club teaches. There are definitely not enough technologists coming through from schools in Surrey and the Tech Cauldron is playing a significant role in enthusing young people about science and technology.
Kate Peters, Grants Manager, Community Foundation for Surrey adds,
The Gold-i Fund for Innovation was set up to provide funding to organisations in Surrey which push boundaries or do something remarkable to benefit those in our community. The Tech Cauldron Club exemplifies this and we wish them every success as they continue to flourish.
Grants from the Gold-i Fund for Innovation are currently made up to three times per year. If your group or voluntary organisation is interested in receiving funding, please see our pages on how to apply for funding.
