Past Events

The Fund raises nearly all its money through individual donations, standing orders and fundraising events.

Here is a list of our fundraising activities over the last few years. Please join us in future events.

2015-16

It was a good year for fundraising. We held three events during the year (see below) and these raised £5,156.

Our first event was our annual Curry Night on 20 April at the Spice Merchant-Pangaea in Kings Heath. This was our third such event and our best! Thanks to the bigger restaurant, and our hosts Abid and Nasser, we had 90 guests and raised a grand total of £1500! The food was as great as ever and we had a very successful raffle which raised over £500. Thank you to everyone that came. Make sure you come next year as well.

Our Summer Party was a great success again. We held it on 20 June and, for the second year, we had perfect weather and we were in the garden all night eating fantastic barbecue food. For the first time we had a laying jazz band for much of the evening, thanks to Phil Smith (one of our fundraising group) and his fellow band members.. We raised just over £1800 during the evening. We were really pleased to welcome three of our beneficiaries to the event. Great fun and we’ll do it again!

Our final event was the annual Christmas Quiz A great event as ever. We attracted 26 quiz teams of 6 to the All Services Club in Moseley. Our quiz master, Mike Nichols (alias David Edgar (another one!)), was brilliant and the evening was very enjoyable. Moreover, we raised £1856 during the evening.

Raffle in action

The winning team.

In addition we held a Graduation Event for Luke Fielding and Gemelle Grant in November to celebrate their recent success in gaining their Masters degrees. Luke and Gemelle, with their guests, joined David Edgar, Sarah Barker, John Rouse and Janis Goodall from the Fund at a meal in town. Well done to Luke and Gemelle for getting their Masters degrees.

2014-15

Samson Daniel, one of our beneficiaries, achieved a first class honours degree in Mechanical Engineering from Birmingham City University. To celebrate the occasion we had a meal in the Mailbox and a great time was had by all. Good luck Samson!

We held a very successful Curry Evening at the Spice Merchant restaurant in Kings Heath. We sold 75 tickets at £20 each, with £10 per ticket donated by the restaurant to the Fund. We would like to thank Abid and his staff for providing such wonderful food and hospitality. We held a very successful raffle at the event and in total we raised £1100 for the Fund. It was a good evening and we hope to hold the event next year. Book early to avoid disappointment!

Our Summer Party was a great success. Held on Midsummer’s night eve with perfect weather we were in the garden all night eating fantastic barbecue food. We had 70 paying guests and managed to raise just over £2000 during the evening. We were really pleased to welcome four of our beneficiaries to the event. Great fun and a great result financially!

The annual Christmas Quiz was a huge success this year. We attracted 26 quiz teams of 6 to our new, and excellent venue, at the All Services Club in Moseley. Our new quiz master, Mike Nichols (alias David Edgar (another one!)), was brilliant and the evening was very enjoyable. Moreover, we raised £1849 during the evening, our best performance so far for a quiz.

Quiz teams John, David and Mike – quiz master

2013-14

The final fundraising event of the year was the Kings Heath Holly Ball. This was a fabulous event organised by the Kings Heath Centre Partnership and held in Highbury Hall on 14 December, in aid of the Eve Brook Scholarship Fund. The posh flock event event included a three course meal in the grand dining room of Highbury Hall, a raffle and charity auction and live music with lots of dancing. We were entertained by The Glamaphones and Peaky Blinders. It was a wonderful evening and it raised nearly £1000 for the Charity. The Fund is very grateful to the Kings Heath Centre Partnership for their support

In November we held our very successful annual Christmas Quiz at the Billesley pub in Kings Heath. We had 23 teams of 6 people and a great atmosphere. We raised £1300 from the quiz fees and a highly successful raffle. This was the third year of our quiz at the Billesley and we seem to have hit on a winning formula which we will be repeating in November 2014.

In October we benefited from an event organised at the Kitchen Garden Cafe in Kings Heath. The event, the ABC of Canadian Music, inolved three Canadian folk singers – Cara Luft, Brandy Zdan and Awna Teixeira – entertaining us and contributing some of their takings. It was a great evening preceded by a tappas meal at Fletcher’s Bar. The Fund is grateful to Colin Nimmo for organising the event.

On 13th April we held another of our special Curry Evenings. This one was held at the Spice Merchant restaurant in Kings Heath. The owner was kind enough to donate £10 of every £20 ticket sold to the Eve Brook Scholarship Fund. For £20 we had a wonderful 2 course meal. We packed out the restaurant with 70 paying guests, a number from Birmingham City Council’s Children and Family Services. We had a great time, and with a very successful raffle we raised £1000 during the evening.

In the summer one of our team of fundraisers, Carol Austin, ran the Virgin London Marathon. She did it in record time and she raised £785 for the Fund. Well done Carol – and thanks!

2012-13

On 30th November 56 people packed Flectcher’s Bar and then the Kitchen Garden Cafe restaurant in Kings Heath for a fundraising dinner organised by Peter and Pat Bailey of Moseley and Kings Heath Labour Party. The event was hosted by Birmingham City Councillor Lisa Trickett, the first woman Labour councillor to represent Moseley and Kings Heath since Eve Brook. The dinner was addressed by Lisa and Eve Brook Fund chair David Edgar and David Esset, a Fund beneficiary who has just started an MSc in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Warwick, part funded by EBSF. We raised £1258 to help Birmingham care leavers go to University.

The annual Christmas Quiz was a great success and raised nearly £1300. We held the event at the New Billesley pub in Kings Heath and attracted 21 teams of six players. The Moseley in Bloom team, Budding Geniuses, won this year. The quizmaster was actor and comedian Ian Billings. It was a great evening which attracted a lot of new supporters as well as our regulars. Look out for next year’s dates!

The Graduation celebration is described elsewhere on this web site.

We have held a series of Midsummer events rather than a large midsummer garden party as in recent years. Weather has not been kind to us in the past!

Angela Cooper and Colin Nimmo arranged a concert evening at the Kitchen Garden Café where Carla Luft (www.carlaluft.com ), a Canadian folk songer performed an excellent set, with support provided by Dave Johnson. We filled the place and a great time was had by all and money was donated to the Fund.
David Edgar and Stephanie Dale held a great dinner party at their house charging guests for the privilege of the good food provided, with proceeds to the Fund.
John Rouse and Janis Goodall invited their local neighbours from Clarence Road into their house for a meal and to spread the word about the charity. A small charge was made and funds were raised and some new supporters identified.
Maria and Harry Gee held an afternoon tea party in their garden and they were lucky enough to have wonderful weather, cakes and goodies which raised some money for the Fund.
There are still some other events in the planning stage.

2011-12

We held a Spring pub Quiz hosted by Ian Billings and a Christmas one hosted by Andy Hockley. We had 30 teams for the latter and sold Christmas cards, merchandise and held an auction and raffle. We raised £3050 from these well supported events and we had great fun.
Our summer garden party was washed out but we still managed to raise nearly £600!
In March 2012 we held a fundraising evening courtesy of the Bay Leaf restaurant at the Custard Factory in Digbeth which attracted over 70 diners and raised in excess of £700.
We had a number of very successful sponsored events:

Carol Austin completed the Paris Marathon and raised £1450 in sponsorship

John Rouse, Janis Goodall, Judy and Alan Wenban-Smith walked the 18 miles of Wenlock Edge and raised £1725

Carl Ford completed a fun run and raised £163

Cheryl Hopkins donated her leaving fund to the Fund, raising £275

Hence, it was a good year for fundraising at over £8000!

2010-11

In July we held a reception for 2010’s graduates at the premises generously provided Anthony Collins Solicitors. We raised £2500, primarily from an art auction with works donated by Charlene Clempson (one of our past beneficiaries), Darren Elliot, John Keane, Sir Anthony Sher and Nancy Spero. The auctioneer was actor Jan Ravens (who played Kirsty Walk, Fiona Bruce and many others in Dead Ringers).
In November we raised over £700 in a pub quiz in which 15 teams of six competed under the campership of Andy Hockley (in rehearsal for his regular performance as Dame in Coventry’s Belgrave Theatre)
Together with other smaller events we raised just over £6000 for the year.

2009-10

We held a garden party in the summer which attracted a good crowd and included a barbecue, a raffle, merchandise sales and entertainment by young people from Birmingham Schools. In spite of the indifferent weather it was great fun and we raised over £1500.
We held our first pub quiz which attracted 12 teams to the Cross wine bar in Moseley. Our compere was Mrs Barbara Nice (aka comedian and actress Janice Connolly) who made the evening very lively and we raised over £600.
We made £332 selling our Christmas card for the year, designed, as always, by one of our beneficiaries.

2008-09

A big fundraising drive was held in 2008, the Funds’ tenth anniversary year. We raised a total of £17,500 through a range of activities!
The main event was the 10th Anniversary Celebration event held at Anthony Collins Solicitors. This was jointly chaired by five of the Fund beneficiaries and was attended by 80 guests who were welcomed by Birmingham’s Lord Mayor, Councillor Randall Brew. The keynote speaker was Fund Patron Baroness Helena Kennedy QC. here
Impressionist and comedian Steve Nallon auctioneered a range of donated paintings, some of them donated by Birmingham summer arts project Gallery 37, and included a piece by fund beneficiary Charlene Clempson. The ten pieces raised £1,635.
The Fund launched its first promotional DVD, presented by actor and writer Simon Callow, and produced by Birmingham University’s Centre for Excellence in Interdisciplinary Mental Health.
In June Fund Trustee Judy Wenban-Smith hosted a Garden Party, which raised over £3200.

1998-2008

The Fund has had a number of events since it began in 1998 but of special note is the event held in 2005 which was an exhibition to celebrate the work of Charlene Clempson held at the International Convention Centre. The event was opened by Birmingham Lord Mayor, Councillor Mike Sharpe. Eleven of Charlene’s paintings, drawings, prints and collages were sold.