Member Article

Coventry property and risk management firm digs deep to support community centre

Volunteers from a property and risk management company in Coventry have dug deep to help spruce up a community centre in the city.

The Wigley Group’s facilities team, based at Middlemarch Business Park, volunteered to help renovate the garden at Koco Community Resource Centre at Spon End in the city.

The centre accommodates nine charities that support a wide range of issues including social isolation, disability, mental health and homelessness and the new garden will help to enhance the number of outdoor activities available at the centre.

The two-day project, which was organised as part of the Coventry 4 Good initiative, saw the Wigley Group team complete a number of improvements including stripping back bushes and trees and installing a variety of tiles and slabs in the garden.

The Coventry 4 Good initiative, set-up by Voluntary Action Coventry, makes it easier for individuals and businesses to help local causes by donating time, skills, resources and money.

Alan Greenway, facilities manager at The Wigley Group, said: “It is fantastic that we have been able to transform the garden into a safe and clean environment that can be used by the centre to host a variety of outdoor activities.

“The project was a huge success and the whole team was really eager to donate their time and get stuck in to help a community project.

“The centre helps a number of charities to undertake vital work to support a wide range of vulnerable people in the community and we hope that the new garden will help to enhance the support they are able to provide.”

Derek Rawle, manager of Koco Community Resource Centre, added: “The garden has been overgrown and disused for many years and we were keen to develop the space.

“Voluntary Action Coventry has helped us in a number of ways and put us in touch with the Wigley Group through its Coventry 4 Good initiative.

“We are aiming to create an environment that can be used by all members of the community particularly the disadvantaged disabled groups we work with at the centre. We would like to be able to provide a range of garden projects and get more people involved.”

He added: “The Wigley Group has given us a foundation to work from. The clearing of the area was very daunting and we didn’t have the capacity to complete the work on our own.

“The facilities team was really helpful and friendly. They provided the skip and tools to renovate the garden and left the area very clean and tidy. We are extremely grateful for their help and support.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Matt Joyce .