Staff at the Nottingham Building Society have raised more than £12,500 to help homeless and vulnerable adults live full and independent lives.

They have been raising money for Framework for the last 12 months after nominating it their charity partner. The money raised will be used to provide crucial Skills for Independence training for people living in hostels and supported housing schemes, to help them get back on their feet.

The Nottingham Chief Executive David Marlow joins in a cooking skills session with Elizabeth House resident Kevin Beard

Last week The Nottingham Chief Executive David Marlow visited our Elizabeth House supported accommodation for single homeless people to present the money and take part in a practical skills session.

 Staff at The Nottingham have held cake sales, raffles, completed sponsored runs and even abseiled down the side of buildings during 12 months of fundraising activity. The £12,500 raised will go towards extending the successful Skills for Independence, programme, which was piloted in 2010 / 11.

With the The Nottingham’s help, Framework aims to run a series of practical skills workshops and peer mentoring sessions at its accommodation centres.

Framework Chief Executive Andrew Redfern explained:

 “The support of The Nottingham over the last 12 months has been fantastic and we are delighted that this money will be put to such a productive use. The skills we teach in our Skills for Independence programme may seem simple, but for a former homeless person they can make the difference between long-term stable housing and becoming homeless again. This kind of preventative work is absolutely vital to the success of what we do.

 “Preventing homelessness is about more than putting a roof over somebody’s head, because many of the people we help have never received a bill, managed their own tenancy or cook for themselves.  By teaching these vital skills we are creating a solid base from which our service users can thrive and move forward with their lives.”

 David Marlow, Chief Executive of The Nottingham, said: “Just like our original founders back in 1849, our desire is to truly make a difference to people and communities local to us. We have been greatly inspired by the work of Framework and wanted to find a special way to help them make a difference.

 “We know that by investing in the Skills for Independence programme we can make a direct and positive contribution to some of the most vulnerable people in those communities. Our Doing Good Together programme has brought together fundraising, community grants and volunteering.  We are proud to have Framework as our Charity partner and to support their enterprises such as Bitesize, Fix it and Job Club.