Charity

Giving Blood
NCFE is putting forward a team of five staff to compete in the North East's own Olympic Games, to mark  World Blood Donor Day on the 11 June. The National Blood Service (NBS) has organised the event to highlight the importance of safe blood around the world and to recruit more North East donors. 

We've been involved with the NBS since 26 March 2007. Since then, NCFE's Rebecca Sangwine has organised 4 blood donation sessions for NCFE staff and other employees within the Citygate complex, raising a total of 104 pints of blood.  

Our next blood donation session is planned for 1 August 2008. 

Click here for more information on the NBS.

Clear up of the River Tyne
We approached the Clean Tyne Project to volunteer our services for a River Bank Raid. The Raid is an event which gives businesses and community groups the opportunity to help in cleaning up the River Tyne.
Nine NCFE staff braved terrible weather conditions to help clear the Tyne of debris and litter and after a lot of hard work, the section of river was transformed.
 


 
Great North Run
We had a number of super-fit staff running the BUPA Great North Run this year. Charities which staff raised money for include RNIB and the Percy Hedley Foundation, a North East school for children with cerebral palsy and autism.
 
Cookie competition
A recent cookie baking competition held at the office rose over £24 for Cancer Research, as well as giving us all a tasty treat! The overall winner of the competition was Emma Lloyd (Sector Officer for Leisure, Travel and Tourism) and she got to choose which charity benefited from staff donations.
 
Young Enterprise Programme
The Young Enterprise Programme is the country’s leading business and enterprise education charity. It offers a range of programmes, based on the principle of Learning by Doing, which brings volunteers from business into the classroom to work with teachers and students. Others use games, hands on activities and role play to develop skills and capabilities for business and enterprise.
We’ve had over a dozen staff donate their time to visit schools across the region and offer their services in helping children to understand the world of work.
  
Macmillan Coffee morning
Over £150 was raised recently in the nation’s biggest coffee morning. NCFE staff made cakes and biscuits which were then sold to raise money for the charity which donates money for Macmillan Nurses. As well as this, a knitting event produced more than a dozen hats to support Innocent Drinks’ ‘The Big Knit’ campaign which raises money for Age Concern.

Here's our Information and Research Administrator, Gill Jackson, displaying her donated hat which won first prize in NCFE's internal knitting contest.

Operation Christmas Child
In the spirit of Christmas, NCFE volunteers put together over 40 boxes for the Operation Christmas Child initiative. The boxes, which are being donated to Romania, were filled with presents suitable for boys and girls and will help those living in a deprived area to enjoy Christmas.
 


Page author Lisa Pettica lisapettica@ncfe.org.uk April 08