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STAFF at a Reading-based housebuilder have completed gruelling physical challenges to raise money for a worthy cause.
Vistry Thames Valley employees raised £7,000 for suicide prevention charity Papyrus, taking on a Tough Mudder and walking or cycling 62 miles.
Papyrus is committed to tackling suicide – the biggest killer of people aged 35 and under in the UK. It provides confidential support and advice to young people struggling with thoughts of suicide through its helpline, HOPELINEUK.
Alix Laflin, marketing manager at Vistry, said: “Our staff really did rise to the challenge to put themselves out of their comfort zones and help raise money for Papyrus.
“There were some sterling efforts by employees taking on the imposing Tough Mudder course at Badminton and those walking and cycling to help complete the Vistry Voyage challenge.
“The work that Papyrus does is especially poignant for us in this industry, as according to figures from the Office of National Statisitcs, more than 1,400 construction workers took their own lives between 2011 and 2015 and the suicide rate for the industry is estimated at more than three times the national average for men.
“So it means a lot to help this charity in our small way.”
A team of 14 Vistry employees were sponsored to complete a Tough Mudder event on Sunday, August 21, where they tackled a series of muddy obstacles over a source at the Badminton estate, South Gloucestershire.
Others took on the national Vistry Voyage challenge, where they carried a commemorative book of awareness 1,163 miles from the North East of England to Cornwall using human-powered transport.
Managing director Trevor Wicks cycled the first part of the division’s section of the route from Marlborough to Kintbury, with operation director Lance Else riding the next stage to Aldermaston.
Land manager James Davis then cycled to the region’s head office in Reading, from where a group of employees walked the two miles down to Sonning Golf Club.
Senior land manager Fiona Harrison completed the anchor leg, riding to Windsor Castle where she passed on the book of awareness to colleagues from Vistry Partnerships London.
Money was also raised through a bake sale at head office and on sites across the division, inspired by the Great British Bake Off.
The money raised contributed to the £257,862 total amassed by all Vistry group divisions for Papyrus.
A spokesperson for the charity said the amount raised, which was £100,000 more than the target set, made it the most successful corporate partnership in the charity’s history.
Amanda Scott Barbera, corporate fundraising manager at Papyrus, said: “The whole of Vistry Group and all their business units have been a delight to work with.
“Because the staff voted the charity in, everyone has been keen to get involved and the Group have been extremely generous.”
To find out more about Papyrus, visit: www.papyrus-uk.org
