This year we’re delighted to announce that we have raised £19,241.39 in donations for our Mutual Advantage partner charities. A £7,626.42 rise from the previous year. A huge thank you to all our members. This achievement will truly benefit our communities!
As a Mutual Society, we’re proud to promote local charities that support our community. Each year, our nine branches choose a charity to become their Mutual Advantage account beneficiary. This means that by saving through our Mutual Advantage account, our members earn interest on their savings in addition to supporting their local branch charity. Every July, our beneficiary charities receive their donation in the form of a Society bonus, calculated as a percentage of the average account balances opened at their local branch.
The funds raised will be allocated to these nine charities:
The Bumblebee Children’s Charity – Hadleigh
The Bumblebee Children’s Charity is a specialist centre working together with families to support babies and young children with physical difficulties. They deliver a fun-filled sensory programme that offers carefully planned sessions to help children communicate and develop physical skills, all whilst making new friends.
Halesworth District Museum – Halesworth
For more than twenty years, The Halesworth District Museum’s volunteers have compiled the history and archaeology within Suffolk. Housed in Halesworth railway station, the archives showcase all aspects of local life throughout Suffolk’s history. A treasure for the local community.
Pauline Wilcock, Chair of the Museum, says: “The Society has supported the Museum for three years and have donated a total of £5,107. This has been used to help fund the new treasures cabinet which now houses the Blythburgh and Cookley hoards. We thank the Suffolk Building Society for this generous donation as well as other support they have given us over the years.
Access Community Trust – Saxmundham
The Access Community trust works with people who may be homeless, vulnerable, and suffering from social exclusion. Their services support men, women, families, and young people to attain independent living within their community. Access Community Trust is a national lottery funded and promote social inclusion for their local community.
Art for Cure – Woodbridge
Art for Cure fundraises from the sale of artist’s commissioned work in support of Breast Cancer research and support services in Suffolk. A nationally registered charity with over 150 volunteers, they have raised over a million pounds in research and have exhibited at iconic locations such as Glenham Hall, Bankside Gallery and Somerleyton Hall.
Belinda Gray, CEO of Art For Cure, says: “This money will help to support many of the valuable services we contribute to here in Suffolk for those facing a breast cancer diagnosis.
“One of these is the breast exercise classes in Colchester, Felixstowe and Ipswich for women who have gone through breast surgery, we fund these amazing classes where post-surgical breast cancer patients come once a week and work with a professional exercise fitness coach as they begin to build up their mobility again.
“Nutrition, counselling, Littlelifts chemotherapy support boxes, further specialist nurse training are just some of the ways we allocate our fundraising, to support the excellent medical treatments for women going through breast cancer here in Suffolk ”
The Aldeburgh Cinema – Aldeburgh
The Aldeburgh Cinema has been delivering film events for residents of the seaside town for over 100 years. An essential piece of the local community, the cinema has hosted classic black and white films, the latest blockbusters, and the popular Aldeburgh Documentary Festival. Their aim has remained the same; to provide a warm welcome and great quality entertainment for the residents.
Michele Kench, General Manager of the Aldeburgh Cinema says: “We’re really grateful to Suffolk Building Society and all the people who have put money into the Mutual Advantage account.
“Aldeburgh Cinema Trust is a charity and has been going since 1919. Our aim to is keep it going for another 100 years. Local people love the cinema and in the dark winter months, we’re often one of the few lights on along the High Street apart from the pubs and restaurants.
“We do screenings of live events like the Royal Opera House and National Theatre, as well as arthouse films and blockbusters. We are also busy planning and organising the Aldeburgh Documentary Festival which will take place on 18th, 19th and 20th November this year.”
Families in Need (FIND) – Mutual House
Since 1990, Families in Need (FIND) has offered a lifeline to people in Ipswich and the surrounding areas who are experiencing poverty and despair. As demand for support continues to rise, delivery of free food parcels and essential items has been vital to the community. They will continue to bring comfort to the lives of children and families living in poverty.
Suffolk Accident Rescue Service (S.A.R.S) – Haverhill
Suffolk Accident Rescue Service (S.A.R.S) provides specialist volunteer responders to assist the East of England Ambulance Service at the scenes of serious incidents. S.A.R.S has been saving lives since 1972 and consists of a network of solo responders and mobile critical care teams. They also deliver in-house talks and invaluable CPR awareness sessions for the public.
Genesis Orwell Mencap – Ravenswood
Genesis Orwell Mencap is a local charity that has been providing adult learning disability services for over 25 years. Their services include daytime support, support in the home and an evening social club. Developing independence is a part of Genesis’s mission as they provide the Garden Furniture workshop for adults with disabilities to learn valuable skills.
Rob Hart – Chief Executive, Genesis Orwell Mencap says: “Genesis Orwell Mencap offers personalised day care services to adults and young people with disabilities, this supports individuals with disabilities in our local community by giving them much-needed respite.
“The key thing that attracts customers to facilities like this, is what activities we can put on and what facilities we have to encourage them to come to us. This money will help us be able to provide better services and activities for our customers and make a real difference to people’s lives.”
The Bridge Project – Sudbury
The Bridge Project was set up in 1995 as a local charity to assist disadvantaged adults within the community. The Bridge Project Café is a hub of creativity and inclusivity, and to this day, they are dedicated to providing a safe, nurturing environment to support those living with dementia, learning disabilities and those experiencing mental health issues.
We’re proud to distribute the funds raised by members to our nine partner charities. For more information on our Mutual Advantage account, and how the charities are selected, visit our product page or contact your local branch.
