August 16 2018

Coventry Building Society has donated £1,000 to Alzheimer's Support - on top of funds raised by staff at the Trowbridge branch as part of their charity partnership. 

The branch has supported the charity since April 2017, and has already handed over more than £900 raised in raffles, cake sales and a celebration day this summer. The latest donation comes after Trowbridge staff  successfully bid for internal funding for local good causes.  

Keelie Billing, Community Champion at Coventry's Trowbridge branch, said: "We were successful in this bid because we could show our head office that we had developed a really strong partnership with Alzheimer's Support over the months. It is so nice for us to be able to help the charity and we have worked really well together. Our customers have been on board with it because dementia does affect so many people. Their mother might have it, or their father, and when we say we are fundraising for Alzheimer's Support they know how important it is."

Alzheimer's Support staff have visited the branch on several occasions to talk about the charity's work in the community and to help building society staff understand the needs of their own customers with dementia.  Building society staff are now planning to spend some time volunteering at the charity's day club in Trowbridge. 

Claire Thomas from Alzheimer’s Support said: “We love working with Coventry Building Society in Trowbridge. They and their members have been incredibly supportive of the work that Alzheimer’s Support does to help people with dementia and their families in Wiltshire. Without such positive partners we could not continue to do what we do”.

Portrait of a partnership

• April 2017 - Claire Thomas ran a Dementia Friends Information Session for five staff in the Trowbridge branch
• July 2017 – Claire ran a Dementia Friends Information Session, hosted at the Trowbridge branch, for nine Coventry Building Society Vulnerable Customer Champions.
• July 2017 - Coventry staff helped run a stall at the charity's Fun Day in Trowbridge Park
• September 2017 - Cheque for £484 was handed over
• Spring 2018 - Coventry staff ran an ongoing raffle for the charity
• April 2018 - Cheque for £540 raised in raffle handed over
• May/ June 2018  - Coventry staff laminated 340 posters to help publicise the Alzheimer’s Support 2018 Fun Day
• June 2018 - Celebration Day for Alzheimer’s Support with a cake stall and information stand outside the branch. 
• June 2018 - summer raffle launched
• July 2018 - Coventry staff once again ran a stall at the charity's Fun Day in the park 
• August 2018  - Cheque for £1,000 handed over to CEO Babs Harris and Chair of Trustees Janet Dore.