Supporting the communities around us
Another busy year of events and installations is coming to a close, and once again we’ve tried to make time for the community alongside the day job. Last year we wrote about the local causes we supported in 2024, and we’ve carried the habit into 2025, with a mix of sport, schools, youth groups and a return visit to Broomfield Hospital.
None of these are grand gestures. They’re the kind of things any local business can do, and we think that’s rather the point. Here’s what we’ve been involved in this year.
Writtle Wanderers RUFC
We were proud to sponsor Writtle Wanderers RUFC this year. Grassroots sport runs almost entirely on volunteers and goodwill, and the costs behind it, from kit and equipment to pitch time and insurance, add up quickly. Sponsorship is one of the ways clubs like this keep going.
Getting children into sport early gives them fitness, confidence and a team around them, and rugby is particularly good at teaching kids to look out for each other. We’re pleased to have our name alongside the club and we’ll be following how they get on.
Sir Geoff Hurst Academy
One of the more special stories of the year. The Sir Geoff Hurst Academy is a brand new special school in Chelmsford, built on the site of Rainsford High, the school Sir Geoff himself attended as a boy. It opened its doors in 2025 and provides a nurturing environment for pupils with social, emotional and mental health needs.
We donated equipment for PE and training sessions. For pupils at a school like this, sport isn’t just exercise. It’s a way to burn off energy, build confidence and feel part of a team, and the right equipment helps the staff make every session count. Having a school like this open in our home town, with a name like that above the door, is something Chelmsford can be genuinely proud of, and we were delighted to play a small part in its first year.
Baby Loss Awareness Week at Broomfield Hospital
In October, we returned to Broomfield Hospital for the second year running to provide the lighting for the Baby Loss Awareness Week event in the hospital gardens. The evening gives bereaved families from across the area a place to come together and remember, and being asked back meant a great deal to us.
As we said last year, it’s a job where the lighting should never draw attention to itself. It just needs to make the gardens feel calm, safe and welcoming after dark, and let the evening be about the families. We hope to keep supporting the event for years to come.
North Avenue Youth Centre
North Avenue Youth Centre gives young people in Chelmsford somewhere to go and things to do, and their trips away are a big part of that. We donated a tent for the centre to use on those trips.
Anyone who has been involved with a youth group knows that a trip away can be the highlight of a young person’s year, and often the first taste of a bit of independence. Decent kit is expensive, and it’s exactly the sort of cost that eats into a youth centre’s budget, so we were happy to take one item off the list. We hope it sees plenty of muddy fields over the years ahead.
Shared Lives
Over the summer, we provided the prizes for the Shared Lives Summer Craft Competition. A competition needs prizes worth winning, and it was a pleasure to supply them and to see the effort people put into their entries.
Christmas Jumper Day
And finally, the team pulled on their festive knits for Christmas Jumper Day, raising money for Save the Children. It’s the easiest fundraiser of the year, everyone looks slightly ridiculous, and it all goes to a good cause. Some traditions are traditions for a reason.
Continuing to support our community in 2026
Thank you to all of these organisations for the work they do throughout the year, and to our own team, who are always up for this side of the business. Two years into writing these roundups, the list keeps getting longer, and that’s exactly how we’d like it to stay.
We’re already looking at how we can help in 2026. If we’ve worked with your organisation this year, thank you for having us.
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from all of us at Spotlight Sound.
