The Clare Foundation provided seed funding to the Oasis Partnership to enable the Charity to take part in a Knowledge Transfer Partnership project with Buckinghamshire New University. The project will help Oasis to become more commercial allowing them to generate alternative income streams to ensure their financial future. Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (KTPs) link forward thinking businesses with the UK’s world class knowledge bases to deliver innovation projects led by inspired graduates. You can read more about KTPs here.
Colin McGregor Patterson, CEO, Oasis Partnership:
“The Oasis Partnership is extremely thankful to The Clare Foundation for supporting our Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) project where we will be working with Bucks New University over a two-year period aiming to commercialise some of our services whilst also bringing in leading management learning and research into our management team.
We appreciated being able to present our model and ideas to Chris, Robin and Martin, and although it felt, a little like being on Dragon’s Den – pitching our ideas to gain grant funding, it was a great experience and I am very thrilled that The Clare Foundation Trustees decided to support our vision, providing seed funding (50% of our contribution) towards the project, the majority of which is funded through Innovate UK.
The KTP is designed to help Oasis Partnership generate future income to support its charitable aims without having to rely on core contracts, donors, trusts and foundations for all its income. This in turn will mean that Oasis will be able to fund some new and innovative services that are often difficult to fund such as youth counselling.
I am sure without the introduction to the KTP and the insight of The Clare Foundation, Oasis may not have been successful in its application to the KTP programme. Thank you.“
Robin Walker, Vice Chair, The Clare Foundation:
“Chris Williams, Martin Gallagher and I had the pleasure to visit the Oasis Partnership and both spend some time with Colin McGregor-Paterson their CEO and see how much they do in their terrific facilities. The facilities have moved on substantially since my first visit a few years ago so it was really good to see such great progress. We (TCF) have had a long-standing relationship with Oasis and I was delighted that we could contribute to a meaningful discussion surrounding the Knowledge Transfer Partnership with Bucks New University (High Wycombe) and provide a grant for this important enterprise.“
Chris Williams, Chair of Charity Services, The Clare Foundation:
“Oasis Partnership has been a major charity in helping people with ‘addiction’. I have known their work for many years and indeed their CEO (Colin) whom it was good to meet up with again. Their work across Buckinghamshire is significant and important and, like Robin and Martin, I was delighted we could visit and see their good work and also support this academic initiative.“
