Background

Allegra’s Ambition aims to enable, engage and empower young, disadvantaged people to fulfil their potential through participation in sport and outdoor activities.

To achieve these aims, Allegra’s Ambition often works in partnership with a small number of carefully vetted charities to deliver a range of projects.

Each charity we work with is chosen because its aims closely align with our goals and because Allegra’s Ambition’s involvement adds real value. We are committed, wherever possible, to supporting projects on an ongoing basis and work closely with our partner charities to build relationships over time. All our partners have proven track records, are well-established, well-governed, low risk and employ dedicated, expert and inspirational staff.

www.allegrasambition.org.uk

Volunteering is a central part of our charity. Allegra’s Ambition actively supports all our fund-raisers and encourages volunteering within our partner organisations wherever possible.

Allegra’s Ambition is currently working with a number of charities in London and the South of England, united by a common goal, to support vulnerable young people and make a real difference to their lives.

About Allegra

Allegra’s Ambition was set up in memory of Allegra who died suddenly and unexpectedly sixteen days after her 16th birthday.

Allegra was a wonderfully positive and happy person. She adored her life, family and friends and was bursting with ambitions, hopes and dreams. She was passionate about sport and was motivated by her dream of one day representing Great Britain at the Olympics. She loved nature and animals, especially ponies and horses, and was a keen rider. She was supportive and kind and cared deeply about injustice and inequality. Allegra inspired many people and would have done good things if she had the chance to live her life and fulfill her dreams.

Our hope is that Allegra’s Ambition will encourage other young people to realise their potential and live their lives to the full.

Winchester Sports Centre

A brand new, state of the art sports and lesiure facilty for Winchester opened at the end of May 2021. The new centre includes:

50m, eight-lane swimming pool
20m x 10m learner pool
Splash pad and water confidence area
Multi-use 8 court Sports Hall
Top Rock Fun climbing facility
Four glass backed squash courts with moveable wall to enable flexible use
Hydrotherapy Pool and treatment rooms
Sparx Beauty Rooms
Fitness suite with 200 stations
Two large group exercise studios
Group Cycling studio
250 spectator seats overlooking the main swimming pool
Café

Images © Hufton+Crow

Outline brief

Allegra’s Ambition in memory of Allegra, who was a keen sports person, will be commissioning a new piece of art. The charity is arranging a public art competition and artists are invited to submit designs for a new sculpture and integrated seating to be sited at the new Winchester Sports Centre at Bar End. The sports centre is a major new addition to Winchester and will contribute to the health and well-being of local people.

The new sculpture will act as a place for people to gather, sit and play adjacent to the playing fields and a new outdoor gym area. It will be an area that welcomes people of all age groups to enjoy the space safely. It will be a combination of sculpture and seating – these could be separate elements that link together, or the sculpture could become the seating itself.

The piece will need to reflect the ideals of Allegra’s Ambition and could incorporate the logo as part of the shape, theme or colour.

It will need to be robust, safe and potentially cope with people sitting, standing and walking over it. The maximum surface area the installation should take up is approximately 5 mtrs in diameter.

There is the potential for the sculpture to incorporate subtle, low-level lighting, but this would need to be powered through photovoltaic cells as there is no mains power to the site. Any lighting would be subject to agreement with the City Council. Ambient light is provided by adjacent car park lighting - see images on the project website: www.spud.org.uk/allegrasambition

The location of the site is shown on the following pages. It can be publicly accessed at all times. Currently the site is an evolving landscape and will include a series of low-level grass bunds/banks that will create a sense of place and enclosure. These low banks will incorporate additional seating, possibly in the form of wooden sleepers. There is also scope for further seating along the top of the banks that can reflect the design of the central sculpture. Embankment C on the plan could be extended to form part of the sculptural form.

The area adjacent to the sculpture will be home to new outdoor gym equipment that will have an emphasis on calisthenics style training (a form of strength training through movement), that also has parallels with Parkour. Therefore, this should be considered as part of any proposal and the potential for the design to be sympathetic and reflective of this additional element. Proposals will need to demonstrate that they will be able to adapt flexibly to this evolving landscape and project.

Budget

A total fee of £50,000 - is available for this commission. This fee will need to cover all materials, professional time and installation of the final piece(s).

The fee can combine the central sculpture and the potential addition of surrounding complimentary seating on the embankments.

The selected artist(s) will be responsible for any additional engineering and health and safety costs that are required as part of the delivery of the commission. Allowance for this should be factored into the budget as appropriate.

Site Plan