A charity scheme supporting four Suffolk projects has been extended for two years – with a pledge of £200,000 over five years.
The scheme comes from Suffolk Building Society and supports charities with more than just an annual donation, offering staff volunteering hours, fundraising events and engagement with its 60,000 members.
The society’s 10 offices in different parts of the province are used for charity and as collection points for goods.
Four promotional films for charities have been viewed thousands of times on social media and YouTube, two of which are nominated.
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Lighthouse Women’s Aid is one of the charities supported by the program (Photo: Suffolk Building Society)
As part of its Safe Homes for Suffolk campaign, the building society chose charity partners with expertise in homelessness, isolation and domestic violence: Ipswich Housing Action Group, Emmaus Suffolk and Lighthouse Women’s Aid.
Suffolk Wildlife Trust was selected for its Saving Suffolk campaign and the club was an early supporter of its new nature reserve in Martlesham.
Jools Ramsey-Palmer, chief executive of Ipswich Housing Action Group, said: “Our breakfast call-in service relies on food donations, so I’m thrilled to have four branches acting as donation points.
“Funding is so tight, the annual monetary donation helps with essential overhead costs.”
Suffolk Building Society staff from branches and head office on the Suffolk Wildlife Trust Wild at Work volunteering day (Photo: Suffolk Wildlife Trust)
Richard Norrington, chief executive of Suffolk Building Society, added: “We were founded 175 years ago to help people get land and well-built homes, securing the vote.
“In addition to protecting members’ savings and supporting their home ownership goals, environmental and social issues remain central to our mission today.
“When we partnered with these four excellent organizations in 2022, we knew they were facing challenges accessing funding, and the cost of living crisis has made that worse.
“It therefore made sense to continue these successful partnerships for another two years, especially given the extent to which our members and staff have engaged with the charities either through volunteering, attending member events, donating in branch or fundraising in person.”