Community donations will now help groups working with the over-70s

A housebuilder which has given monthly donations to community groups for the past five years has announced that the scheme is to solely help the over-70s for the foreseeable future.

Persimmon Homes South West launched Community Champions with a view to helping community groups, charities and good causes across Somerset, Devon and Dorset with two donations of up to £1,000 made locally every month.

However, as the nation starts to feel the effect of the Covid-19 outbreak, the housebuilder feels that, at the moment, elderly communities are in the most need of support.

The change of direction will come into effect from April, with the donations for that month going to groups that work with and support the over-70s. This will continue until further notice. The March donations will be open to all community groups, in line with previous months.

The Community Champions initiative is run by all of Persimmon Homes’ 31 operating businesses together with its Plc head office, with £64,000 donated nationally every month. Since it was launched in 2015, the Community Champions scheme has donated more than £3m to around 3,500 groups.

Robert Hart, director-in-charge of Persimmon Homes South West, said: “We have always believed in supporting the communities where we build, especially grassroot activities, and we hope people understand our desire now to specifically support the over-70s at this time.”

To apply to Community Champions, visit:  www.persimmonhomes.com/charity