Chiswick's Waitrose to donate £1,000 a month to local good causes

Community projects in Chiswick are set to benefit from £12,000 of funding a year thanks to the newly opened Waitrose Chiswick and its ‘Community Matters’ initiative.

Each month, Waitrose Partners choose three causes to benefit from a share of the supermarket’s £1,000 regular donation.

The first three local causes to benefit from the programme in December 2008 were:

• Chiswick House: received £280 towards protective clothing for their volunteers who are undertaking a £12.1 million restoration project to restore the gardens.
• Chiswick 3rd Scouts: £180 will help buy camping equipment for the longest running scout club in Chiswick, soon to be celebrating their 100th anniversary.
• Chiswick Age Concern: received £540, this charity is run entirely by volunteers who organise social activities such as teas, bingo and outings.

In January, Waitrose Chiswick and its customers supported:

• A Spoonful of Sugar: £550 will go towards helping seriously ill children by sending a professional entertainer or artist into hospital wards to give them a healing dose of fun.
• Thames Explorer Trust: £190 will contribute to teaching communities about the Thames to build a better future for it, by providing river visits & educational materials.
• Old Chiswick Protection Society: received £260 to help protect local amenities, services and improve the environment in Chiswick.

The causes that Waitrose Chiswick and its customers will support this month are:
• Chiswick Branch of RNLI (lifeboats)
• Friends of Gunnersbury Park and Museum
• Rambert Trust

How it Works

Shoppers at the checkout are each handed a green token which they can place into one of three labelled boxes at the store exit, allowing them to learn about and vote for the cause they would like to support. The more nominations a cause gets, the greater the share of the donation they receive.

Shoppers can also join Waitrose Chiswick in supporting community projects by nominating causes that are important to them by simply filling in a ‘Waitrose Community Matters’ leaflet at the Welcome Desk in store. All types of causes such as senior citizen homes, local schools and youth projects are poised to benefit from the scheme.

‘Community Matters’ is a corporate and social responsibility (CSR) initiative which will see all 198 Waitrose food shops across the UK donate money to local causes every month.

Mark Stevens, Branch Manager of Waitrose Chiswick, said, “‘Community Matters’ is a fantastic initiative that will make a huge difference to a lot of people in the area. We’re passionate about working with the community and as a team are very proud to be working on such a worthwhile scheme. We look forward to seeing lots of nominations from our customers in the coming months.”

February 13, 2009