Staff in £1m charity boost

Bank staff in Wolverhampton have handed over an incredible £1 million to a charity following a three-year fundraising campaign.

Pendeford-based Birmingham Midshires, Wolverhampton’s biggest private employer, presented a cheque for the massive sum to Shelter.

Staff have organised a raft of activities to drum up cash for the cause including five-a-side football tournaments and sponsored walks.

The company made up the majority of the award by donating funds from selling mortgages. Simon Johnson, service manager at Shelter’s West Midlands housing advice centre, said today he was delighted at the bank’s generosity.

“We are grateful to Birmingham Midshires for their generous support and commitment to Shelter’s work,” he said.

“The £1 million raised will substantially help Shelter’s work in giving housing advice and support to thousands of homeless and badly-housed families seeking advice and support throughout the country.”

Birmingham Midshires announced an industry-first joint venture with Shelter back in 2005. Managing director Nigel Stockton said: “It’s a credit to the fantastic efforts of our colleagues and partners that we are able to raise this amount to help Shelter support families across the region. We know support like this is vital for Shelter’s tremendous work to continue.”

Birmingham Midshires employs 1,600 people at its headquarters on Pendeford Business Park.

Back in March it handed out £9,000 to five deserving causes including St Paul’s CofE School in Coven, city charity Safe, the City of Birmingham Special Olympics charity, Age Concern in Stourbridge and Stafford-based Re-Solv, the national charity dedicated to the prevention of solvent abuse.