L-R: Emmaus North Staffs Sales Coordinator Jenni Hayward with Katie Higgins of Tesco Extra Hanley
A local charity has been able to provide more brand new beds to children following support from a Community Champion in Stoke-on-Trent.
Katie Higgins joined Tesco Extra, in Hanley just over two months ago as a community champion and after researching and visiting the Emmaus North Staffs charity shop, in the Potteries Centre, Hanley, she was overwhelmed by the amount of work the organisation carries out.
With Katie’s help a large Easter basket was donated and included in a fundraising raffle helping to raise more than £400 towards the charity’s Beds for Kids campaign.
Katie said: “Part of my role as a Community Champion is to build relationships including with local charities and when I spoke to staff at the Emmaus North Staffs shop I realised how much they do in the area and what a good cause it is so I am trying to support them as much as we can.
“They work so hard to try and end furniture poverty and their Beds for Kids campaign, which is helping to give brand new beds to local children is something so important.”
Tish Cooke, who works in the Potteries Centre shop, said “Katie has been amazing. When we told her about what the charity does she wanted to help straight away. We thank Katie and everyone who has supported us at Tesco Extra with the Easter basket, which was raffled off in the shop during Easter weekend. All monies raised will go towards our Beds for Kids campaign.
“We have also received a brand new barbecue set from Katie’s support, which we will be raffling off after that. The support means the world.”
Executive Lead of the charity, John Webbe, said: “Katie, staff and shoppers, at Tesco Extra in Haley have been brilliant. We are hoping to raise as much as we can from the raffle so we can provide more bed kits to local children and now we can. We thank everyone who helped to make this happen at Tesco Extra and visitors to our charity shop.”
The charity’s Beds for Kids campaign provides bed packs which include a brand new bed, mattress and bedding to children without their own. Each pack costs around £225.
Katie is looking to build on the relationship with Emmaus North Staffs and will be looking to offer further support later in the year.
“We have already donated furniture items and other donations and we are now looking at more ways to find items to donate to help Emmaus North Staffs,” adds Katie.
“We will definitely be staying in touch and I will be connecting with more local charities and looking to see what we can to help others too.”
Emmaus North Staffs work to end furniture poverty and each year they provide assistance to 800 local households who are in need of furniture and appliances. The charity shop and emporium are open to the public six days a week.
For more details about Emmaus North Staffs visit emmaus.org.uk/north-staffs/.
