Charity

Housebuilder in Cheshire donates to homeless after chance meeting with charity boss

- 25 Jun 20

A Cheshire housebuilder has made a £500 charity donation to help homeless people, after a colleague met with a charity boss by chance as his elderly mum bought a new-build home.

Bovis Homes – which is part of the newly-formed Vistry Group – donated the funds to homelessness movement Emmaus after meeting an area CEO who had booked an appointment and visited the housebuilder’s Hazelmere new-build location in Haslington on behalf of his 75-year-old mother.

After his mum saw the house virtually, a Bovis Homes sales colleague spoke with Tony Stephenson, of Emmaus Bolton, who happened to mention the charity, which also tackles social exclusion and has had an increase in residents staying with them due to the lockdown.

Lou Macrae, regional marketing manager at Bovis Homes, said: "We heard of Tony’s story from our sales team who were helping his mum buy a home at our Hazelmere development in Haslington. We thought Tony was so down to earth and passionate about helping the homeless during these times. Our sales adviser was really touched by Tony and the charity and asked if we could help in some way. We’re happy to give a donation of £500 to help him replenish items desperately needed for the homeless especially in the current situation."

Emmaus has recycling shops across the country to generate income for the charity and have been reopening on a phased basis after closing in March due to the lockdown. The charity is now hoping for donations to help provide household and other items residents – called companions – need.

Tony added: “At Emmaus, the companions and our team are extremely proud that in normal circumstances we generate all the income the charity needs though our own hard work in our recycling businesses. Since lockdown on 23rd March we have had no income. We have a little in reserve to ensure that we can survive an emergency, however, no one saw this virus coming!

“Our reserves have ensured that we can keep a roof over our heads, food on our table and the bills paid but, we have had ‘cut our cloth’ to suit the reduction in income. This wonderful gift from Bovis Homes will be used to reinstate some of the non-essential items that make the lives of those companions who live with us more pleasurable.”

The charity provides accommodation, personal support and jobs in the recycling shops to its companions aimed at equipping them with the tools and confidence for a positive future.

For more information on Emmaus, visit www.emmaus.org.uk. To find out more about Bovis Homes’ Hazelmere location and others nearby, visit www.bovishomes.co.uk.