Staff from a Harrogate estate agency are reaching out into the community over the festive season with the biggest programme of support in its 21-year history.
The team from Linley & Simpson, on Princes Square, are aiming to deliver a sackful of Christmas cheer to a raft of charities and good causes – including help for rough sleepers in the town.
Harrogate Homeless Project Is one of several charities across Yorkshire that will benefit from Linley & Simpson support this festive season.
The initial donation from the agency, which also has branches in Wetherby and Ripon, has been used by the charity to buy an extra 25 sleeping bags.
The agency is also raising awareness of the needs of Yorkshire’s homeless community, especially at Christmas, by promoting the link-up through door drops, social media and email.
Over and above the initial donation, every extra market appraisal generated in December will result in an extra £25 gift to Harrogate Homeless Project.
The support will build on the money raised by two Linley & Simpson colleagues, Lauren Sayles and Amy Norman, who took part in this year’s Sleep With Simon event in Leeds.
The duo joined hundreds of others in sleeping out in the open in Tilt Yard in the Royal Armouries as part of the biggest fundraiser of the year staged by homeless charity Simon On The Streets.
Martin House Children’s Hospice at Boston Spa – the agency’s chosen charity partner – is also a key benefactor of the Christmas fund-raising campaign.
Volunteers from the agency will be out in force with collection buckets for the Bradford City home match against Oxford United on Saturday November 24, as the football club kicks off its own charity partnership with Martin House.
Teams from its Harrogate, Wetherby and Ripon, branches are once again selling Martin House Christmas cards at various markets and Morrisons stores across Yorkshire and are hoping their efforts top last year’s, when over £2,000 was collected.
Meanwhile Lynne Taylor, the agency’s Accounts Manager and Associate Director, will be donning a red suit and white beard by taking part in the Santa on the Run event staged in Wetherby by Martin House on Sunday December 2.
The Martin House fund-raising events will culminate with the company’s annual Christmas jumper day and photo competition which takes place on Friday December 14.
Emily Wilkinson, Linley & Simpson’s Customer Services Manager, said:
Thanks to the enthusiasm of colleagues, this year marks our biggest – and most ambitious – festive fund-raising campaign.
While it is a joyous time for many, it is also very difficult and stressful time for disadvantaged and less fortunate people in our community and those with serious illness, particularly children and young people.
We hope the series of initiatives that are in place across our whole network of offices will go some way to improving the lives of such people over the festive season and spread some Christmas cheer wherever possible.
