St Martins has been awarded a £3,500 grant from the B&Q Foundation. The homeless charity is one of the first in the UK to receive a grant from the Foundation – which has so far raised a total of nearly £500,000.
St Martins will use the money to fund the redevelopment of an outdoor space at its new XL Centre. The centre offers support for vulnerable adults who are homeless or at risk of homelessness by offering opportunities to develop the skills and confidence that will help them to live independently in the community.
The new garden area will be used by the charity’s clients as a safe space to meet, socialise, wait for appointments and will also provide shelter and water for clients’ dogs; an outdoor oasis they can enjoy without the fear of being moved on.
Colleagues from the local B&Q store on Boundary Road in Norwich recently visited the charity in their signature orange aprons to find out more about the projects the B&Q Foundation has funded. The team donated plants and tools as well as sharing some advice on the project. The money was raised from the sale of face masks at B&Q, with all profits going to the B&Q Foundation in order to give grants.
Nicola King, Head of Life Skills and Social Development at St Martins, said: “We’d like to thank the B&Q Foundation for the funding. Being able to create a welcoming garden area is going to make a real difference to our clients. They often tell us they have nowhere to go where they can just be themselves, with no pressure from anyone, and feel safe. We hope to create that here.
“It was great to welcome the team from B&Q Boundary Road to tell them all about the work we will do with the money they and their customers have helped to raise.”
Catherine Burge, Chair of the B&Q Foundation, said: “St Martins does absolutely vital work in Norwich and Norfolk to help prevent homelessness in the community by offering support to the most vulnerable. We’re really pleased to be able to support them through a B&Q Foundation grant and help the charity create a safe garden space for their clients.”
The B&Q Foundation is a charity set up by B&Q; born out of a belief that anyone can improve their home to make life better. B&Q wanted to reach its local communities to help everyone realise the benefits of home improvement.
Through the B&Q Foundation, B&Q will help local communities shape the spaces that mean so much to them – whether it be a community hall or care centre, a hostel or a hospice. Improving the environment around us can be transformative. B&Q has so far raised nearly £500,000 for the B&Q Foundation from the sale of face masks, with £1.50 from each pack donated, all of which will be distributed to charities around the UK through grants.
More grants are available – so local charities in Norfolk wishing to find out more about the B&Q Foundation and to register interest to apply for a grant should visit: https://www.neighbourly.com/BandQFoundation
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