St. Modwen Homes donates £15,000 to South Derbyshire charity

St. Modwen Homes, the housebuilder behind the 200-new-home Manorfields development in Swadlincote, has donated £15,000 to South Derbyshire Community & Voluntary Support (CVS) to help the charity reach its increased demand for support as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Swadlincote-headquartered charity provides volunteer-led support to vulnerable individuals across South Derbyshire including people who are older, disabled, or in financial difficulties.

With COVID-19 forcing a national lockdown, South Derbyshire CVS experienced a significant increase in demand from vulnerable and isolated people in the community unable to leave their homes to get essential groceries and collect prescriptions.

In response, the charity recruited, screened, and organised 98 additional volunteers to support its efforts and, between March and June, completed 211 shopping trips; collected 163 prescriptions; made befriending calls to 131 isolated people; and provided 243 emergency food parcels containing essential food and toiletries to 169 vulnerable or isolating households.

In addition, South Derbyshire CVS also provided guidance and support to 26 local COVID-19 community groups that organised support in their own communities and neighbourhood. This work saw the charity establish a support network for volunteers leading these groups  and a dedicated website – Stronger South Derbyshire – to help coordinate local responses to the pandemic.

Kerrie Fletcher, Chief Executive Officer at South Derbyshire CVS, said:

“This grant will make a huge difference to our ability to continue supporting vulnerable people during COVID-19 and beyond. Since being forced to close some of our paid services, we have seen a significant reduction in income at a time when the need for support has never been greater for our services users. We also expect this demand to last a long time as the emotional, economic, and practical impacts continue even after the lockdown lifts.”

Dave Smith, Managing Director at St. Modwen Homes, said:

“The work that South Derbyshire CVS has done during this crisis has been nothing short of a lifeline for many in the community. As a business, we are committed to doing more than just building new homes in South Derbyshire and we are incredibly proud to provide this grant to South Derbyshire CVS, which is making a real impact on the lives of local people, to help it continue with its crucial work.”

Find out more about St. Modwen Homes, here: www.stmodwenhomes.co.uk

Find out more about South Derbyshire CVS, here: https://sdcvs.org.uk/