B&Q Foundation

In the last few weeks, I’ve been out visiting some of the charities the B&Q Foundation has supported in the London area. Learning more about the amazing work they do and asking what we can do as funders to better support them. The highlight though, was meeting the individuals mentioned in the grant applications and seeing the playrooms, kitchens and therapy rooms we funded that help those charities create enjoyable, calming and welcoming spaces for the people they support. Thanks to the teams from Hestia Charity, Evolve Housing + Support and The Passage for giving myself, Catherine Burge and Paul White your time.

I have recently taken on a new exciting venture as Trustee on the Board of the B&Q Foundation. The B&Q Foundation provides grants to charities who are improving or creating better spaces and homes for people in our communities who need them most. The Foundation is supported by the generous fundraising and donations from our B&Q store colleagues and customers. Yesterday I had the opportunity to visit a charity in London, The Passage with Anna Peters and Samantha Churchill. The Passage run one of the largest Resource Centres for those experiencing or at risk of homelessness in London, offering a wide range of services that help to prevent and end homelessness for good. It was an insightful day and I’m proud to see how this charity has benefitted from the grants that the B&Q Foundation provides. We hosted our vendor conference charity gala earlier in the year in aid of the B&Q Foundation, which Sam Churchill was instrumental in organising. Without all her hard efforts and the work of her team, we would not have had such a successful event and raised £500k for the Foundation. I’m glad she could join me to see first-hand how the money she has helped raise will be benefitting charities. Thank you to The Passage for showing me all the work they do, and to Jeannie Pitt & Anna Peters, for organising the visit. I’m looking forward to my new role within the B&Q Foundation and seeing how we can further help those across the UK with our fundraising efforts. 

The team at Boaz were delighted to receive a generous grant from the B&Q Foundation this year, which has been used to complete essential weather-proofing works on four of our houses for people with refugee status and people seeking asylum 🏡 Our Chief Executive, Ros Holland, explained the impact of the grant: "Having a safe and warm place to stay is so important because it enables people to rest and recover from past trauma and find the headspace to tackle the situation that caused them to be experiencing homelessness. The benefits of this grant will be felt for years to come by current and future residents who would be facing destitution if these homes were not maintained as part of our vital housing provision. A big thank you to B&Q Foundation for their generous support and for understanding how important a home is as a foundation for life and health." 🧡 Neighbourly #ThankYou

More Affordable Housing for Young People 🏠 EveryYouth, with our charities the Rock Trust and The Benjamin Foundation have created 10 new bedspaces in Perth (Scotland) and Norfolk through our Future Builders programme. This latest expansion includes the creation of 4 one-bedroom flats in Perth, and the conversion of 2 three-bedroom houses in Norwich into affordable homes. 🤝 Future Builders is more than just a housing initiative; it's a lifeline for young people engaged in education, employment, or training. By providing affordable accommodation, the programme helps these individuals take their crucial first steps towards a promising career and stable future. 👏 Thanks to the generosity of The John Laing Charitable Trust and the B&Q Foundation, EveryYouth is poised to add another 3 bedspaces to the programme. Thank you to The Rock Trust for hosting a wonderful opening of the four new flats! Read more here: https://lnkd.in/e_NE8QdZ #AffordableHousing #FutureBuilders #EveryYouth #EmpoweringYouth #BuildingBrighterFutures #CommunityCollaboration

Powering forward together – Our Charity Gala Dinner I am immensely proud to announce that through the raffle, auctions and ticket sales at B&Qs first ever Gala Dinner, we raised a massive £475k for the B&Q Foundation. The money will go towards the B&Q Foundation’s work to help more charities to create better spaces for people in need in our communities. I would like to say a huge thank you to our vendors. We couldn’t have done this without your support and donations. The B&Q Foundation was established in 2020, since then B&Q has raised over £6 million pounds through the support of our customers, vendors and colleagues and supported over 1,000 charity projects across the UK. Our Gala Dinner, was an evening full of entertainment, vendor recognition and the chance to connect. It was hosted by Hugh Dennis and we ended the evening with a comedy set from Dara Ó Briain which was both entertaining whilst fitting for the audience. I would also like to recognise and congratulate Samantha Churchill and her team for organising such a fantastic event. The B&Q Foundation does some amazing work through its grants and I’m committed to supporting the charity in the future. Thank you once again to our generous vendors. #BandQ #PoweringForwardTogether B&Q Foundation

Our amazing B&Q stores have already raised over £250k this year for our charity partners, so it was great to be able to take some of our Community Champions to spend a day seeing where some of that money goes. Thanks to the The Sick Children's Trust, B&Q Foundation and to Shelter for an inspirational day.