- 05-Mar-2021
The team at SPP work closely with several volunteering programmes and charities who work endlessly over the years to provide care, support and guidance for people who need help no matter what the circumstance.
SPP Pumps joins forces with The Forest Foodbank
Last year saw the start of a loyal partnership between SPP Pumps Ltd and the Forest Foodbank. The Forest Foodbank, part of the UK wide Trussell Trust, distributes between two and three tonnes of food each month to local families in need. Every day people in our communities go hungry for reasons ranging from redundancy to receiving an unexpected bill on a low income resulting in no money left to buy food. Therefore, a simple box of food makes a big difference contributing to preventing crime, housing loss, family breakdown and mental health problems. 2020 was an especially challenging year and saw the demand for foodbanks rise significantly. At SPP Pumps, we have always wished to do our part to support the local community and contribute to the amazing efforts of the Forest Foodbank to provide a lifeline to families and individuals who live in the area that our Coleford manufacturing facility is based in.
A heartfelt thank you that goes a long way
And so, with this in mind, in the earlier part of last year, we donated over 23kg of food to this ever-expanding hard-working foodbank network. We were delighted to get such a lovely response from their Project Leader, Yvonne Webb, “In what has been a very difficult and challenging year for us all. The Forest Foodbank are delighted to have been supported by SPP Pumps. The support you have given to us has been amazing and is very much appreciated it has allowed us to continue to feed the needy and vulnerable in the Forest and to give the support which is needed by all who visit us. Without companies like yourselves, we would not be able to continue – our heartfelt thanks for all you do for the Forest Foodbank and we look forward to continuing to work with you in the future.” It is when we receive appreciation like this, it truly makes it all worthwhile.
The start of a charitable collaboration with the Innovation Lab
The Innovation Lab, based at the Coleford Library, Gloucestershire is a hub that has been created to inspire, engage and up-skill people of all ages to have fun while building confidence in using virtual reality, 3D modelling, printing, design and coding. This creative space started back in June 2019 and has gone from strength to strength. SPP Pumps saw great value in this programme and consequently engaged with a local enterprise to open the lab as a proud sponsor.
Since its first pilot workshop in June, SPP has worked in partnership with the Innovation Lab to provide digital technology and science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) workshops for local primary school children. The programme itself owes its great success to the STEM ambassador volunteers from SPP Pumps.
Providing the local community with the opportunity and direct access to the latest digital technology such as virtual reality, augmented reality, 3D printing and microcomputers has allowed the Innovation Lab in partnership with the SPP Stem Ambassadors to deliver workshops on various topics giving people of various ages the chance to explore and develop their skillsets.
Feedback to be proud of
The feedback so far has been incredibly positive, and below are just some of the comments we have received:
County Cllr, Dave Norman: "We are proud to be forming such strong links with local businesses and we are really pleased to be working in partnership with SPP Pumps to deliver these workshops to support local schools. Hopefully, the children will get an insight into what engineering is and what technology can be used for’’.
Hayley Alliston, Headteacher at English Bicknor Church of England Primary School: "Having this local resource is a great opportunity for our pupils and we hope that this visit is the first of many."
Deb Harris, Innovation Lab Manager: "I am really grateful for SPP for funding transport to the lab for schools and working as STEM ambassadors."
Receiving such encouraging and positive feedback is what makes our work so much more rewarding. However, unfortunately, since the emergence of Covid-19 last year, progress with this exciting and innovative programme has taken a bit of a back seat. For more information and to stay up-to-date with its development, please keep an eye on our news feed or check out the Innovation Lab Twitter feed
We are keen to support charities and volunteering programmes and after such a tough year for so many, we try our utmost to spread our support to those who need it most. If you would like to talk to us about any of the topics above or you would like to get in touch with one of our team concerning a specific charitable enquiry, please do email our team. We look forward to hearing from you.