POSITIVE BUSINESS
It ’ s not too late to join the pack
More than 30 larger than life balloon dog sculptures – the Swindogs – are set to be unleashed across Swindon this summer in the biggest and most colourful local event of 2023 .
The Business Exchange has proved it ’ s not too late to join the pack and is proud to be part of this exciting , first-time-ever event for the town as Swindon goes walkies !
The uniquely decorated ‘ Swindogs ’ will create the UK ’ s first-ever balloon dog art trail and will raise essential funds for children ’ s hospice charity , Julia ’ s House .
The super-sized sculptures have been sponsored by local companies and organisations including Imagine Cruising UK , Swindon Borough Council , Beard , Intel , Nationwide Building Society , Bespoke Guardians Swindon Wildcats , Jazzbones Creative , Arval UK , Better Link Centre , Telenco , Swindon Advertiser , Persimmon Homes , Wyvern Theatre , National Self Build and Renovation Centre ( NSBRC ), Annabel Karmel , Swindon ’ s Bus Company and now The Business Exchange .
Anita Jaynes , Founder of The Business Exchange , said , “ The Business Exchange is thrilled to be supporting Julia ’ s House with this fantastic initiative which celebrates art , champions our area , and brings businesses together for good .
“ It ’ s a great opportunity for us to be part of a big community event in a special year for The Business Exchange as we get set to celebrate our tenth anniversary later this year .
“ I ’ ve personally seen the difference hospice care makes to children and families living with life-threatening or life-limiting conditions and wanted to help Julia ’ s House with its mission .
“ I ’ m looking forward to sharing all the latest Big Dog Art Trail news via The Business Exchange Swindon and Wiltshire in the coming months .”
There are just a handful of Swindogs left to sponsor . From those remaining , sponsors can choose which location on the trail or Swindog design aligns best with their brand . However , the designs are being kept under wraps until they are unveiled in the summer . There were over 200 artist submissions to decorate the Swindogs which was narrowed down to a final 30 .
Martin Edwards , CEO for Julia ’ s House , said , “ Now we have our final 30 designs we can really envisage how amazing the Swindogs will look around Swindon . We ’ re so grateful for the support from our partners , sponsors , artists and everybody involved in bringing The Big Dog Art Trail to Swindon this summer - the event is going to make a life-changing difference to the local children and families we support ."
Schools , colleges and children ’ s nurseries are also encouraged to take part by designing their own 80cm high balloon dog sculpture as part of The Big Dog Art Trail ’ s learning programme .
Once decorated , around 40 mini Swinpups will feature on the free art trail through some of Swindon ’ s best loved and historic places , alongside the 30 full-size Swindogs .
As well as receiving a blank Swinpup sculpture to decorate and keep forever , participating schools and communities will be supported with guidance and resources to help design their sculpture and engage their young learners in the project .
Swindon Borough Council , which recently allocated £ 80,000 from a special UK Government levelling-up grant to part-fund the event , is the Trail ’ s official Learning Programme Partner .
Councillor Matty Courtliff , Swindon Borough Council ’ s Cabinet Member for Culture , Heritage , Leisure and Town Centre Experience , said , “ All children should have the opportunity to explore the arts and develop their creative skills with hands-on , real world experiences . Thanks to funding from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund , we ’ re delighted to be supporting The Big Dog Art Trail and Julia ’ s House as the trail ’ s Learning Programme Partner . I ’ m very excited to see what our town ’ s budding young artists will create with their own Swinpups .”
Julia ’ s House has partnered with Wild in Art , the leading producer of spectacular public art events that entertain , enrich , inform and leave a lasting legacy . To date , Wild in Art events have enabled over £ 23.6m to be raised for charitable causes , injected £ 3.8m into local creative communities , engaged over one million young people in learning programmes , and helped millions of people of all ages to experience art in non-traditional settings .
Julia ’ s House hopes to raise £ 150,000 to support the charity ’ s care from the event . The charity relies on external donations and fundraising activities to carry out its work which provides a lifeline of care for the most seriously ill children and their families in Wiltshire both at home and in the Devizesbased hospice . Julia ’ s House only receives around 8 per cent of its funding from the Government , so community events such as this are its lifeblood . £ 1.5m is needed each year to support the charity ’ s care in Wiltshire and the need is rising . The number of babies , children and young people living with life-limiting conditions had trebled in England over the past two decades to around 87,000 . This means there are more children in Wiltshire needing specialist care than ever before .
The Big Dog Art Trail will run from Saturday 15th July to Sunday 3rd September , ending with a grand farewell weekend where all of the sculptures will be brought together under one roof , before being sold off at a special auction event to raise money for the charity . The Swindogs will then be off to their furever homes . To find out more about becoming a Swindog sponsor visit : www . bigdogarttrail . co . uk / sponsors / or get in touch with the Julia ’ s House team by emailing : big . dog @ juliashouse . org
“ We ' re so grateful for the support from our partners , sponsors , artists and everybody involved in bringing The Big Dog Art Trail to Swindon ”
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