Have your say – vote for EPIC’s Charity Of The Year!

Every year, EPIC picks a Charity Of The Year to work alongside and support. We raise funds for these charities by taking part in local events. In 2024 we participated in 2 fayres at the Discovery Academy and ran a prize stall and tombola, both through our own staff fundraising and raffles.

Last year (2024), we raised just under £1,000 for Alice Charity – a local group who provide support for vulnerable families, and we also worked alongside them to promote their services to residents in the area and make more people aware of the great work they do.

In 2023, St Stephen’s Church Foodbank in Bentilee was our nominated charity and we raised over £700 to help them in their work to provide food parcels and other support for local residents.

This year we’d like you to help us choose our Charity Of The Year by taking part in a quick poll. We have a shortlist of 5 local charities, nominated by our staff, and the charity that gets the most votes from our tenants and staff will be the one we support for the next 12 months.

The nominations for this years’ Charity Of The Year are:

• Bentilee Volunteers – local charity in Bentilee who’s aims are to be at the heart of the local community, enable and empower local people, support disadvantaged and vulnerable residents, and improve overall quality of life. Find out more on their website at www.bentileevolunteers.org.uk
• CONCRETE – predominantly a homeless charity, supporting customers with substance misuse. Find out more on their website at www.thisisconcrete.org.uk
• Macari Foundation – set up by Lou Macari in 2016, the Macari Foundation is committed to end homelessness in Stoke-on-Trent. The Macari Centre currently provides support to around 28 individuals at any one time, helping them to get their lives back on track and into their own accommodation. Find out more on their website at www.macari-foundation.co.uk
• Ten Count Boxing – a local volunteer-run gym in Bentilee that provides low-cost fitness equipment and classes and boxing classes, focussing on health and discipline and engaging with vulnerable people and children to encourage them to improve their lives. Find out more on their website at www.tencountboxinggymcio.com
• Thrive at Five – the local branch of a national charity that provides support to families with children under 5 years of age, ensuring that they are socially and developmentally ready for school and supporting families with a variety of other issues. Find out more on their website at www.thriveatfive.org.uk

Please take a moment to vote in our poll – it’s open until 5:00pm Thursday 17 April and we’ll announce the results soon after the closing date.

We’ll also keep you posted with updates about what the chosen charity has done through our regular Newsletter updates, as well as providing you with opportunities to get involved at events.