Bellway has announced it has set itself a target of raising £4 million for Cancer Research UK (CRUK) before the end of 2024.
Since the partnership with Cancer Research UK began in 2016, employees at the housebuilder have dedicated their fundraising efforts to the cause.
Bellway has now raised just over £3 million for CRUK and is now aiming to raise another £1 million in 2024, which will take it past its overall target of £4 million by the end of the year.
All 21 divisions and Head Office of the company are involved in the campaign which is called ‘4 in 24’, with the slogan ‘Giving to build better lives’.
The year has got off to a good start, as the developer held a National Charity Day recently, which raised over £30,000 for CRUK. It included a company-wide virtual quiz with 265 employees from across the country taking part.
Stephanie Parsons, partnership manager at CRUK said: “We are incredibly proud to be continuing our partnership with Bellway throughout 2024 with the ambition of raising £4 million for life saving research.
“The success of the recent National Charity Day demonstrates the continued commitment of everyone at Bellway to our partnership. Cancer Research UK’s vision is to create a world where people live longer, better lives free from the fear of cancer – this is only possible thanks to our incredible supporters and partners such as Bellway.
“Thank you to everyone at Bellway for your support and generosity. Together, we are beating cancer.”
As part of the campaign, Bellway’s Thames Valley division raffled off various prizes including food and drink hampers at its head office in January and raised £290. Last year the division held a charity ball in September which raised more than £50,000 including Bellway’s double matching.
Other fundraising activities set to take place throughout 2024 include dress down Fridays, cake sales and people taking part in the London Marathon and Tough Mudder challenges.
Lorna Edwards, Bellway Group Deputy Company Secretary, said: “Our National Charity Day was the perfect way to kickstart Bellway’s continued fundraising for CRUK in 2024. It was a great day which raised over £30,000, with lots of people having lots of fun and hundreds of employees taking part in the big quiz.
“We are proud to support a cause close to many of our hearts and are confident that we will again achieve our target for this year, raising an additional £1 million over the next 12 months. This charity work is one of the key facets of our Better with Bellway sustainability strategy, which touches on every aspect of the business, with a focus on putting people and the planet first.
“Across the country our employees are engaged and working hard to raise money in their own unique ways. One idea we are currently considering is thinking of some way to reach out to our customers to allow them to help and support us in our fundraising drive for CRUK. We are also hoping to hold another company-wide National Charity Day later in the year to give us another boost to the campaign.”
As well as raising money for CRUK, Bellway also aims to focus on volunteering for the charity. As part of the Better with Bellway strategy, the company has introduced a new Volunteering Policy which gives employees the opportunity to use one working day a year for volunteering with a charity or community group.
Bellway’s target is for 4,000 hours of volunteering to have been donated by 2026, and hopes some of this time will be used by employees to help out in CRUK charity shops.
For more information about Bellway’s fundraising, visit https://sustainability.bellwayplc.co.uk/