JCB - the world's third largest manufacturer of construction equipment - today announced a significant contribution to help save one of the world's most important industrial archives. The Bamford Charitable Foundation - the charitable giving arm of JCB - has pledged £100,000 to the appeal to save the Wedgwood Collection.
JCB Chairman Lord Bamford said: “Staffordshire has a long and proud history of manufacturing and the Wedgwood Collection is of huge importance not only to this county, but also to Great Britain. I'm delighted to pledge £100,000 through the Bamford Charitable Foundation to help keep together this unique collection of British art for future generations.
“It's staggering to think that the Wedgwood family had already been in business for 60 years when my family started out as blacksmiths in Uttoxeter in the 1820s. It's those deep roots and long links with manufacturing in Staffordshire which make the preservation of our heritage so important.”
The fundraising appeal to save the Wedgwood Collection has now reached well over £2.3m of its £2.74m public appeal target – securing an extraordinary £1.1 million in donations from the general public with an additional £1.2 million from a series of major donors, trusts and foundations.
The Bamford Charitable Foundation's donation has now been match funded by a private charitable trust, giving a significant £200,000 boost to the appeal.
Stephen Deuchar, director of the Art Fund, said: “Gifts both large and small are what make such fundraising targets possible and we’re hugely grateful to the extraordinary support from the Staffordshire community. We’re delighted that so many individuals, businesses, trusts and foundations – particularly this hugely significant gift from the Bamford Charitable Foundation – have been able to help bring us steadily closer to our target. We’re also thrilled that the exceptional creation of a match fund, which doubled every gift in the first weeks of the campaign, has now been extended in order to encourage further donations.”
The Art Fund has until 30 November to save the Wedgwood Collection. The public appeal to raise £2.74m was launched on Monday 1 September, having raised just over £13m of the full £15.75m target through the Heritage Lottery Fund, private trusts and the Art Fund. Now that £2.3m has been raised through the public appeal, just under £450,000 still needs to be raised.