Clydesdale and Yorkshire Banks raise over £390,000 for Help the Hospices

09/2/2009

On 11th February 2009, employees of Clydesdale and Yorkshire Banks will recognise a landmark first anniversary, having raised over £390,000 for Help the Hospices in just one year.

Over the past 12 months, employees raised over £390,000 for Help the Hospices across the UK, of which employees have raised more than £195,000 and the bank has matched their fundraising efforts by adding a further £195,000. 

One of the top fundraisers was 50-year-old Jock Ferguson, an employee from Clydesdale Bank’s Carlisle Branch, who raised £8094.50 by completing the ‘Alphabet Marathon’ – 26 marathons in 26 different cities, each beginning with a different letter of the alphabet. 

Jock has been running marathons for 25 years, and since 2003, he has been averaging three marathons a year to achieve his goal with his quest taking him from Yiltornio in the Finnish Arctic Circle, to Xiamen on the coast of the South China Sea.  He has run as fast as 2 hours 44 minutes in Edinburgh, to 5 hours 25 minutes on a 5500ft climb in the Jungfrau region in Switzerland.

Maxine Trotter, Director of Fundraising at Help the Hospices, said: “We’re delighted with the fundraising activities and events that have taken place in the first year of the partnership.  The money raised by the Bank’s employees, as well as their support and enthusiasm, has made a great contribution to the care hospices provide in their communities.  We look forward to continuing our partnership with Clydesdale and Yorkshire Banks and further boosting fundraising initiatives to raise money for hospices across the UK.”

Employees across the Clydesdale and Yorkshire Bank network have been involved in a range of fundraising initiatives, from midnight fun runs, marathons, and quiz nights, to ‘Lock Up Your Boss’ events, abseils and Santa dashes at Christmas.  Additionally employees volunteered a total of 1500 hours of their time across the year, to help out with various tasks for the hospices, such as gardening, making tea, and helping out various mail shots.

Dean Cutbill, Products and Marketing Director for Clydesdale and Yorkshire Banks, commented: “We have exceeded our target of £250,000 by over £140,000, which highlights the tremendous efforts our employees have gone to over the past year. Help the Hospices is a very worthwhile charity and we are proud to play our part in supporting the communities in which we live and work.”

Clydesdale and Yorkshire Banks’ Head Offices and network of branches and business centres are paired with local hospices – a distinctive aspect of the Help the Hospices corporate partnership programme, which allows businesses to support hospice care on both a national and local level.

Every Clydesdale and Yorkshire Bank branch will receive a special first birthday pack from Help the Hospices, which includes cake recipes, party decorations and fundraising ideas, to celebrate the huge amount of money raised so far and to encourage future fundraising.