For the second year running colleagues from Wain Estates and Wain Group spent two days at the inspirational Warrington Youth Zone helping Santa to sort presents for the centre’s Christmas Grotto 

The Youth Zone is a haven for young people aged 7-19 with its own recording studio and gym and offers more than 20 different activities every day.  

Colleagues who helped last year were so inspired by the work they returned again this year bringing with them a host of different gifts which were added to donations from other local businesses.

The team then helped select appropriate gifts which were then put together in a hamper and beautifully wrapped in time for the big day.

Wain Estates Associate Planning & Development Director, Natalie Webster, said: “The Youth Zone does fantastic work and it was a privilege to be able to help spread some Christmas joy to the young people who come along. It shows the power of community and the difference when we all work together.”

A seven-strong team of colleagues from Wain Group headquarters in Birchwood, Warrington, swapped plans for paintbrushes to help transform a day centre for the visually impaired.

Warrington VIP (visually impaired people) won £10,000 in a competition on Absolute Radio but needed help to carry out the work to prepare and then paint the community lunch space at the building.

The aim of the charity is to help people, along with their families and friends, come to terms with sight loss, enhance the quality of life, promote the continuing independence and raise awareness of the needs of vision impaired people.

The charity’s deputy CEO Vicky James, said: “It was amazing to win the money but the refurbishment would not have been possible so quickly without the support of the Wain Group.

“The team that came down were wonderful and their work has made a tremendous difference to the whole feel of the place which had not been redecorated in four years!

“The strange yellow has gone replaced by a classy blue, the main foyer, which suffered from damp was sanded and sealed before being painted and the toilets also got a fresh coat of paint.

Vicky added: “Our VIPs are such a fantastic group of people and there is so much laughter and joy each week we are so delighted to welcome them into this transformed space.”

The Wain Group visited the centre as part of our Helping Hands initiative, which sees colleagues volunteer their time to support charities, schools and good causes in their local communities.

Wain Group executive assistant Rachael Davies, who visited the centre to see what help was needed said: “Once again it demonstrates what a difference Helping Hands can make working together with community projects to make life better for others.”

When staff at Beaumont Primary School in Warrington decided to tackle an overgrown area of the infant playground, team members from Wain Estates and Wain Group were happy to lend a Helping Hand.

Tasks included clearing paths, pruning overhanging trees and shrubs, and even creating bug hotels. The transformation was remarkable, with two large skips filled by the end of the day.

Natalie Badley, Assistant head teacher at the school said: “We are so happy with the work the Wain team did on our playground. It looks great – what a difference it has made. We cannot wait to see our young children explore the area through changing seasons.”

Paul Wrigglesworth, Property Director at Wain Estates said: “It was fantastic to be involved in a project that allowed a large section of the playground to be brought back into use. We hope the children will enjoy exploring the trail and surrounding greenery. A big thanks to Beaumont School for inviting us along – we hope we made a real difference!”

The Hideaway is an amazing community facility in Partington, Greater Manchester, providing a range of services and support through its Hope Centre to help make people’s lives better.
 
When the charity was approached for help to tackle an overgrown garden they asked us for a Helping Hand and we were happy to step up.
 
Four colleagues from Wain Estates; Mark Newton, Andy Hesketh, Will Young and David Cowan donned gardening gloves and took along power tools to cut back hedges and shrubs and bring the garden back into shape.
 
Working alongside volunteers from The Hideaway, the team also arranged for all the waste to be removed and the garden owner is once again able to enjoy their space.
 
Darren English from The Hideaway said: “The Estates team were a great bunch of guys to work with and are a huge credit to the company. Without their help, we would not have got the job done in a day or been able to clear away all the waste.
 
“The transformation was incredible and means so much to the home owner. Thanks so much to Wain Estates for the Helping Hand.”
 
Andy, our property and estates manager, said: “The Hideaway is a valuable project in Partington and surrounding areas, providing support to residents.  It was a great opportunity to work with the Hope Centre, and in particular Hope Green, on one of their garden projects.  Helping Hope Green to make such an impact on the garden was very rewarding for our team, and we are delighted that the owner was pleased with the outcome.”

The Walton Lea Partnership does incredible work in the community, supporting vulnerable adults and young people with learning disabilities by providing a variety of activities and opportunities. 
 
Much of the learning, development and supported work activity is centred around horticulture from its base at Higher Walton in Warrington.
 
A formidable four of Jenny Dockney, Jack Brister, Lynne Kennedy-White and Danielle Grimshaw, were joined by other Wain Group colleagues and helped out around the gardens, weeding, clearing leaves, de-mossing footpaths and planting and potting.
 
Jack Brister, Wain Estates managing director of development, said: “We were only too pleased to be able to spend a day helping our neighbours and finding out more about the partnership’s extensive programme.”
 
The Charity aims to empower learning disabled and vulnerable adults with hands on practical experiences to help them lead active and independent lives to their full potential. It supports learning new skills through eight social enterprises including furniture upcycling, woodwork and media as well as horticulture.
 
Donna Sleet, communications & community fundraiser at Walton Lea Partnership, said: “The Wain Estates team were brilliant and did a fantastic job at the back of the garden. They looked like they enjoyed themselves and interacted with our amazing learners. 
 
“We hope they enjoyed our company as much as we enjoyed theirs.”
 
You can learn more about the Partnership’s work here: https://waltonlea.org.uk/

Colleagues from both Wain Estates and Wain Group had the privilege of helping out at the Warrington Youth Zone as the centre prepared for Christmas.

The Centre is a haven for local youngsters providing all manner of activities from a rock-climbing wall to a recording studio as well as support for the local community. Our teams were kept busy over two days wrapping gifts donated by the public for a Santa’s Grotto and putting together food hampers which were then distributed.

Throughout both days, the teams were moved by the continuous outpouring of donations from the local community and businesses and impressed by the facilities and support on offer.

Sarah Brennan, Supporter Engagement Lead at Warrington Youth Zone, said: “I would like to thank the Wain teams for giving us their time to volunteer. Warrington Youth Zone supports lots of families providing gifts, food hampers and a meal to make sure all our families have a wonderful Christmas. We really couldn’t do all this without support, so from everyone here at Warrington Youth Zone we would like to say a huge thank you and we hope you enjoyed your time with us.”

Wain Group executive assistant Rachael Davies, said: “It was a real privilege to be able to help this wonderful centre and to learn more about the services and support it offers to young people and their families. It is an amazing resource for Warrington and all our volunteers felt inspired by their time volunteering.”

Our Helping Hands initiative will continue throughout 2024, with every Wain colleague encouraged to volunteer to help projects in the communities in which we work.