With three months of the ‘Charity Year’ still to go, a Bradford headquartered garden centre group has exceeded its fundraising target by 50%. 

At the beginning of April, the teams at Yorkshire Garden Centres’ sites in West and North Yorkshire pledged to raise £30,000 for Martin House Children’s Hospice, the independent charity that cares for babies, children and young people with life-shortening conditions from West, North and East Yorkshire.

Through a series of fundraising events, stock donations collection boxes at the tills and the ‘Pennies’ initiative, the teams at Tong, Tingley, Otley, Bingley, York, Scarborough and Pennine Garden Centres have donated over £45,000.

Yorkshire Garden Centres’ group people and culture manager, Steph Harrison said: “Every year Martin House cares for more than 550 children and their families, as well as supporting around 200 bereaved family members, at its hospice, in hospitals and in the community. It is open 24/7, 365 days a year, whenever families need help and support.

“It costs around £10.5 million a year to provide this level of care, the majority of which comes from voluntary donations and fundraising. Thanks to the support of our colleagues and customers who have used our ‘Pennies’ initiative to donate at the checkout, we have smashed our initial fundraising target and are looking forward to raising even more money for this very deserving cause, which was our first Charity of the Year when we acquired Tong Garden Centre in 2015.”

Hannah Finan is the charity’s partnership manager: “This amazing amount could fund Martin House for 24 hours and could also help us provide end of life care for a baby, child, or young person here, giving families precious time with their loved one in peaceful surroundings.”

Mrs Harrison concluded: “In the last decade, we have raised over £140,000 for local charities through our Charity of the Year initiative and have donated £12,500 to community groups through our Kindness Pot which supports projects suggested by our team. This level of giving puts us in the top 1% of Just Giving supporters, which is an amazing statistic to celebrate.”

To contribute to Yorkshire Garden Centres’ fundraising, please visit https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/ygcgroup

Martin House has 15 beds, nine for babies and children, and six for teenagers and young people. Its support includes planned respite stays, symptom control, emergency care, end of life care and bereavement support.