Scarborough members tick the box for charity

Scarborough Building Society members have boosted the coffers of two of the Society’s partner charities, through their participation in this year’s Annual General Meeting.

And this year, the percentage of people taking the opportunity to have their say on the Society’s future direction rose to19.38%, continuing Scarborough’s trend of year-on-year increases.

For every vote cast, the Society pledged to donate 20p to good causes, rounding the total raised up to £5,000– which has been split equally between family support charity Home-Start and Yorkshire Wildlife Trust.

This latest commitment adds extra weight to the strong relationship the Society has already built up with Home-Start on a local and national level, through its Family Saver account. This sees the charity receiving £1 for every account opened, with a guaranteed minimum donation of £500 per branch annually.

The Society has supported Yorkshire Wildlife Trust for the past three years. During this time, it has donated both cash and volunteering time to the York based charity, including spending time at Burton Riggs nature reserve, which backs onto the Society’s head office in Scarborough.

As part of its commitment to Corporate Social Responsibility and demonstrating modern mutuality, Scarborough pledges 1% of pre-tax profit annually to good causes in its heartland area. Charities are chosen by their physical location and a set of criteria, focusing on the three main strands of Financial Education, Culture & Environment and Quality Employment.

Scarborough Chief Executive, John Carrier, said: ‘The ethos of both Home-Start and the Wildlife Trust fit very well with our own values and we are proud to be associated with charities that offer so much to local communities.

‘Our members have shown with their votes that these are the type of charities they identify with, and we’re delighted to re-affirm our commitment to positively transforming the communities within which we operate in this way.’

The donation from Scarborough will be used by Home-Start to publish a new set of information booklets, entitled “Volunteer support”, to help promote and raise the profile of their services nationally. Yorkshire Wildlife Trust will be utilising the cash to help build a boardwalk in the Burton Riggs reserve, helped by Scarborough volunteers.

For more information about Scarborough’s CSR policy, please visit scarboroughbs.co.uk/together. To find out more about Home-Start, visit home-start.org.uk. Or you can access the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust’s website at ywt.org.uk.