Ulster Bank has announced plans to extend its charity partnership with the Northern Ireland Children’s Hospice and has committed to another year of fundraising for this service.
The announcement came as a group of Ulster Bank colleagues were invited to visit the Children’s Hospice headquarters and meet team members and medical staff who provide care at its Horizon House facility in Glengormley. Joining the Ulster Bank delegation on the visit was David Lindberg, CEO of Retail Banking at NatWest Group.
The local charity provides specialist palliative care for more than 4,000 babies, children, and adults with life-limiting and life-threatening illnesses and provides a wide range of support services to their families.
In 2023, Ulster Bank colleagues raised over £160,000 for the charity, which is the only service in Northern Ireland providing specialist palliative care and support to local children living with life-limiting illnesses, and their families. The money was raised through several initiatives undertaken by Ulster Bank colleagues including cookery demonstrations, donation buckets in branches, and charity football matches.
Much of the activity took place during ‘One Week in September’ an annual drive organised by Ulster Bank which sees hundreds of colleagues support fundraising activities for a chosen charity. The headline event in 2023 involved Ulster Bank colleagues undertake 40 hours of continual movement, walking through Belfast City Centre, to represent 40 years of hospice care. This was supported by local actor, James Nesbitt, who completed the last few miles with the teams.
Plans are already in place to surpass this fundraising total in 2024 and preparation has already begun for this year’s ‘One Week in September’ campaign. It has also been confirmed that Ulster Bank will take on the title sponsorship of the NI Hospice’s annual Dragon Boat Race competition which is set to take place over two days on 13th and 14th September 2024.
Welcoming the news that NI Children’s Hospice has been confirmed as the bank’s charity partner, Conal Duffy, Head of Corporate Fundraising at the Children’s Hospice, said: “At Northern Ireland Children’s Hospice, our mission is to provide compassionate palliative care to local babies, children and young people living with life-limiting illnesses, and their families. We aim to brighten the lives of our children and families and provide vital support, comfort, and joy as they navigate this difficult journey together”.
“We are incredibly grateful to be chosen as Ulster Bank’s chosen charity partner for 2024 and are looking forward to developing this partnership even further and strengthening the work we do in supporting people throughout Northern Ireland.
Speaking about the continued partnership, Sandra Wright, Head of Organisation and Workforce Design, at Ulster Bank, said: “As a leading provider of banking services in Northern Ireland, we take seriously our responsibility and commitments to wider society here. As such, a huge part of our ethos focuses on supporting individuals, families, and communities and making a positive impact.
“So many of our colleagues have had cause to interact with the services provided by the Northern Ireland Children’s Hospice and want to play their role to give something back to this important organisation, whether that’s through fundraising for the charity or by volunteering their time. We are excited to grow this partnership throughout 2024 and have already begun planning fundraising activities to try and beat last year’s incredible total of £160,000.”
For more information about the work of the Northern Ireland Children’s Hospice, visit www.nihospice.org.
