JLR employees raise £8k for charities hit by virus
EMPLOYEES at the Jaguar Land Rover plant in Halewood have donated more than £8,000 of their own money to local charities affected by coronavirus.
Donations have been given to several organisations that have struggled during the pandemic, including three Merseyside food banks and Sefton Women’s and Children’s Aid (SWACA), which provides essential support to families suffering from the traumatic impact of domestic abuse.
Other local charities to benefit from the donations include Radio City’s Cash for Kids, Kind, and the Birchwood Centre, in Skelmersdale, which is providing hot meals to isolated and vulnerable people during the Covid19 crisis.
In addition, Halewood employee Neil Mercer has single-handedly raised more than £6,000 for frontline NHS staff, by dressing up as SpiderMan on his regular runs to help cheer up locals during the lockdown.
More than £1,000 of this was given by his JLR colleagues.
As well as donating, hundreds of Halewood employees have been volunteering around the region – with many signed up as NHS Volunteer
Responders delivering much needed support and medical supplies to vulnerable people across Merseyside.
All money donated by JLR employees came through the Halewood Employees’ Charity Fund, which is funded entirely by employee and supplier donations.
Neil Frackelton, chief executive at SSWACA, said: “We are a small organisation dealing with a very significant issue, in addressing the traumatic impact of domestic abuse on women and children living in Sefton.
“Every day we face an on-going challenge, dealing with the constantly high demand for our services, even before the Covid-19 situation.
“As you can imagine, we are very concerned about the likely follow-on impact, in terms of rising tensions within families living through the lockdown period.
“That’s why we are incredibly grateful for this generous contribution from the Jaguar Land Rover employees as it will be used to help continue vital services over the next few weeks and allow us to reach out to those vulnerable households who will be relying on our support now, more than ever.”
Trevor Leeks, operations director at Jaguar Land Rover Halewood, said: “We are living in unprecedented times and as a responsible business, we must do what we can to support our local communities.
“There is an incredible spirit among the team at Halewood, who have blown me away with their response to the crisis.
“All the money that’s been donated has come out of their own pockets and we have also been inundated with updates from staff about all the volunteering and charitable work they have been doing outside work, which makes me incredibly proud.
“All the donations and the vital support they are providing will make a huge difference to many households in Merseyside which have been hardest hit by the devastating effects of this crisis.”
Supporting long-term partners at the British Red Cross, the Halewood plant has also lent it a fleet of its Merseyside-manufactured vehicles, including the Range Rover Evoque and Discovery Sport, during the pandemic. The vehicles will be used to deliver essential medicine