Independent West Country housebuilder Devonshire Homes has marked its 30th anniversary by announcing two new charity partners for 2022/2023.

The housebuilder, which currently has new build homes sites in Crediton, Bovey Tracey, Bideford, Kingsbridge and St. Austell, has announced South West Blood Bikes and Cornwall Blood Bikes as its two Charities of the Year.

Both Blood Bike charities are formed from teams of volunteers who rely on donations alone to operate their life-saving service. Volunteer bikers use their advanced motorcycle skills to provide an ‘out of hours’ service to NHS partners, transporting essential urgent supplies such as whole blood, pathology samples, medication, medical equipment, medical notes and donor breast milk to NHS hospitals and hospices throughout Devon and Cornwall.

Devonshire Homes will donate £25 to South West Blood Bikes and £25 to Cornwall Blood Bikes for every open-market house sold during the year and Devonshire Homes’ staff will also show their support by hosting and taking part in a variety of fundraising events.

Mark Bentley, Chairman of South West Blood Bikes, visited Devonshire Homes’ head office in Tiverton to deliver an insightful talk on the service Blood Bike volunteers provide and how it makes a difference to the NHS and people receiving treatment.

Mark commented: “We are delighted that Devonshire Homes has chosen South West Blood Bikes as one of its Charities of the Year alongside our friends at Cornwall Blood Bikes. We don’t receive any government funding and do not charge the NHS for our services. We rely 100% on donations from the public and businesses so we’re always very grateful when a company such as Devonshire Homes chooses to fundraise for us.

“It is great to see a housebuilder committed to giving back to the communities in which it builds in, particularly at a time when the NHS is under more pressure than ever before. We look forward to a very successful partnership with the team at Devonshire Homes.”

Devonshire Homes has a history of supporting local charities. To date, it has raised just under £50,000 for local charities including Children’s Hospice South West and Hospiscare. The housebuilder also regularly supports bespoke causes including the Tiverton Rugby Club, Mid Devon Show and Tiverton in Bloom.

Angus Cook, Managing Director of Devonshire Homes, commented: “At Devonshire Homes, we support a number of local good causes, but in consultation with our staff, we choose a Charity of the Year as a focus for our fundraising activities. We are all aware that the NHS is under a tremendous amount of pressure which hasn’t been helped by the Covid-19 pandemic, so we felt it would be an ideal time to support a charity such as the Blood Bikes which tries to ease that burden.

“It was a pleasure to welcome Mark to our head office in Tiverton to talk to our team about the vital work the Blood Bikes do, providing a rapid response medical transport service to the NHS. It really brought to life how hard these volunteers work. Not only do many of them have full-time jobs, but they dedicate their evenings and weekends to being on call in case a local hospital needs urgent medical supplies. We’re delighted to be supporting both South West Blood Bikes and Cornwall Blood Bikes and look forward to a year of fundraising.”

Independent housebuilder Devonshire Homes, based in Tiverton, has been creating new homes and communities in towns and rural areas across Devon since 1992. Current developments include: Tarka View, Crediton; Longston Cross, Bovey Tracey; The Grange, Bideford; Applegate Park, Kingsbridge and Gwallon Keas, St. Austell.

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Foyne Jones, leading executive recruitment agency specialising in the KBB, Builders Merchant & Home Interiors sectors is proud to partner with its Charity of the Year, Balls for Brains: working passionately to reduce the stigma that surrounds mental health through the power of team sports.

Peter Jones, Managing Director of Foyne Jones says: “I am a passionate supporter of improving mental health in the workplace, as well as a massive fan of team sports so when I discovered Balls for Brains via a post on LinkedIn, I wanted to step-up and help a local charity which is dear to my heart. The company’s mission is to empower players and clubs worldwide and give them the confidence to discuss and promote better mental wellbeing for everyone. Rightly so, they start at the grass roots which is why we want to help them to deliver their free #PackMindset workshop to all clubs in Sussex.

We are finding that optimising employee wellbeing at work is a massive trend that every business needs to take seriously this year, especially as we continue to adjust the way we live in the wake of the pandemic and Brexit, alongside technological advances and changes within the KBB industry. We may not all play rugby, but every business depends on working in a team to make things happen within a framework of mutual respect, care and support.”

Based in Eastbourne, East Sussex, Balls for Brains is the brainchild of Jon Tutty, who founded the charity after re-discovering the power of community and friendship rugby provides as he managed his own mental health issues 15 years ago.

Jon says: “We all need someone to talk to and when I returned to my local rugby club after a diagnosis of bipolar disorder, Asperger’s Syndrome and non-verbal Tourette’s syndrome, everyone had my back. As people at the club began approaching me to talk about their own mental health, I saw the potential of reaching out to sports clubs as safe and supportive spaces to break the stigma surrounding mental health concerns. It’s what I call ‘the power of the pack’. Today we deliver #PackMindset to businesses and sports clubs throughout Sussex and the South of England alongside providing a 24-hour helpline and signposting individuals and families to specialist services including benefits advice, homelessness and recovery support.”

Peter adds: “I was hugely impressed by the work that Jon and his ambassadors have done for mental health and the creative approach they have taken with fundraising including a great clothing range and a clear ‘Road to Wellbeing’ strategy to assist when life feels overwhelming. We kicked off our work together by donating pre-loved sports kit so that as many people can get back into the game as possible and we have already beaten out first fundraising target by raising over £1,000 with a sponsored 5k run at Seaford in February. We are proud to help sponsor a Balls for Brains mental health first aider at rugby matches, in branded kit and is available to the public and the players on the day. Making connections through sport and the community of family, friends and colleagues is vital for good mental health, and Foyne Jones and our sister company Jones Digital are keen to lend their signature passion, energy and expertise to give Balls for Brains an even louder voice.”

Jon was recently a guest on season 5 of The Foyne Jones Show podcast series and everyone look forward to raising even more awareness of the vital work that ‘Balls for Brains’ are doing. “As a leader in business and hands-on manager, I know I need to look after myself and my people to ensure we are happy and inspired to deliver our services to an exceptional standard. As I believe in opening-up important conversations to a wider audience, I will be bearing the costs for a bespoke mental health workshop provided for Balls for Brains at our premises in Newhaven and invite my business friends and associates to come along for the experience. We must lead by example and support our hard-working teams through change without continuous personal and professional development and a commitment to openness in the workplace,” says Peter.

Award-winning housebuilder, The Hill Group has partnered with Gathering Voices to provide the local arts charity with exclusive use of the buildings at the former Park Furnishers site in Bristol in a bid to help support local artists working in the city.

Forming part of the wider Whitehouse Street regeneration, Hill acquired the site in 2020. Since then, Hill have been working in partnership with Bristol City Council and Galliard Apsley to bring forwards a framework for wider regeneration with plans to create a new mixed-use development consisting of new homes, commercial space and new public realm improvements.

As the project undergoes the early stages of consultation and development, Gathering Voices has been granted exclusive use of the warehouse on a fixed contract to occupy the old Park Furnishers building. Here, they will be creating Stillhouse Studios, a creative space for established and experienced artists, designers, and makers alike to create textile work and various film, photography and performing arts projects along with creative educational sessions for all ages. Ideas for the external parking spaces include food-based markets and innovative environmental projects to bring wildlife to the site.

With a creative outreach programme designed to bring life back to underused and vacant spaces in and off East Street, Gathering Voices (est. 1985) is an innovative arts charity working primarily with children and young people. The charity also supports adults in music, mentoring, youth leadership and creative projects designed to empower and build community. 

Andy Fancy, Regional Managing Director at Hill, comments: “We are delighted to be working with Gathering Voices to help them support local artists by providing a location for such a wide range of creative outputs. With complementary social values, this partnership will help us deliver a lasting, positive legacy in Bristol, delivering much-needed new homes whilst supporting the local community.”

Hannah Klewin, Director at Gathering Voices added: “The arts sector has been one of the biggest casualties of the pandemic where creativity and collaborations have had to be put on hold, which has affected our local community initiatives heavily. We are delighted to be working with an empathetic developer like Hill to bring to life our most recent creative space where we’ll be able to offer more opportunities for communities of Bristol.”

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