Member Article

Caring Hands needed in Shieldfield

A charity that supports the elderly and disabled in Newcastle is celebrating the culmination of a successful two-year corporate sponsorship programme.

Caring Hands Charity in Shieldfield was established in 1992 with the aim to sustain the independence and quality of life of older and disabled people in the East End of Newcastle.

For the last two years, Newcastle-based accountancy and business advisory firm UNW has been the charity’s corporate sponsor and has raised over £16,000 through a series of events and volunteering activities across the city.

Caring Hands are now looking for a new corporate sponsor to help take the charity to new successes in 2016 and beyond.

Dawn Henderson, manager at Caring Hands said; ‘UNW has been our first corporate sponsors and they’ve done a fantastic job helping us grow the charity and support the work we’re able to do in the local community. As well as helping us raise over £16,000, they’ve also given us priceless advice on how to organise and run the charity, so we’re very grateful for their support.’

Julie Paddon, project manager at UNW has worked on the charity sponsorship throughout the two-year period. She said: ‘Caring Hands is a small, independent local charity that does a huge amount of great work in the East End. We wanted to find and support a charity that works at the grass roots, providing essential support to those people who may not be able to access any other services. Through many events, fund-raising concerts and volunteering over the two years, members of staff at UNW, and their families, have given up their time and their expertise to help raise money to enable Caring Hands to help even more people in need.’

Caring Hands provides a wide range of services with the active support of volunteers with services for the elderly and disabled, including laundry services and providing small equipment aids to help older people remain independent in their own home and hosting social events such as their popular lunch club to provide an affordable hot meal and chance to meet other people in the area. Caring Hands also provide a handyman service to help out with essential home maintenance, as well as offering general advice and information around the wellbeing of older and disabled people.

Dawn added; ‘Last year we provided over 4,700 services and we helped over 1,600 people to remain independent and enjoy a good quality of life in our area. It’s an invaluable service that sees a growth in demand each year, and without the support from organisations like UNW, we wouldn’t be able to cope with the volume of requests we receive.’

‘UNW’s fundraising efforts helped make a significant contribution to our operating funds, thanks to the many events they organised including a Charity Band Concert with the Newcastle Concert Band, a Tyne Bridge zip wire, volunteer gardening days at the community park next to Caring Hands office in Shieldfield and their staff also donated Christmas presents for all of Caring Hands clients, some of whom may not have received any other gifts at Christmas.’

‘We’re now looking for a new corporate sponsor and would love to hear from any other local businesses that are keen to support a local charity and make a real difference to their local community. Please get in touch with us via email at contact@caringhandscharity.org.uk or ring us for a chat on 0191 2615234’

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Alex Kinsey .