Charity of the Month for October

The Sir Tom Cowie Charitable Trust funds projects that provide opportunities for young people and improves the quality of life in less affluent communities in the City of Sunderland and County Durham. One of these project is ‘Coats for Kids’ which Chairman of the Trust, David Gray, initiated in 2018. In this insight, David tells us about the great work carried out by the Trust.

Can you please give us a brief overview of what your charity does and who it supports?

The Sir Tom Cowie Charitable Trust operates in Sunderland and County Durham, with a focus on Sunderland, Derwentside and the dales of Teesdale and Weardale. Our primary aim of support is to give children opportunities that they otherwise wouldn’t get, by introducing the urban dweller to the rural environment and the rural dweller to the urban environment, with a further focus on historic buildings and environmental projects.

Where are you based?

We are based from the Estate Office, Broadwood Hall, Lanchester.

Can you please give us an insight to the Coats for Kids Initiative?

The Coats for Kids initiative came from a visit I made to a primary school in Sunderland in late 2018. Sadly I became aware of the fact that many children did not have suitable outdoor clothing to wear in wet and cold weather. I gathered up coats through GSC Grays staff and gave them to five schools.  However, this wasn’t entirely satisfactory and, therefore, we decided to raise money in 2019 through the Lambton Clay Shoot which allowed us to buy 200 coats that, in turn, went to 20 different schools in Sunderland.

Lycetts are supporting Coats for Kids over the next few months through the campaign ‘Lycetts Movember’. Movember is an annual event that see’s men across the globe grow their best moustache in aid of awareness towards a charity or cause for the month of November.

This year, Lycetts are getting involved, and across the 16 offices, 20 staff members have already started growing their moustaches in aid of raising awareness and funds which will buy coats for kids and be distributed across schools. We are looking forward to seeing the moustaches at the end of November!

The recent news that the temporary increase to universal credit will soon be reduced will mean that households could stand to lose £20 per week. This extra £20 could be the difference between heating going on, or having a warm meal of an evening. Now more than ever then, it is important that children are able to access clothing that will keep them warm and safe as we head into the darker, colder, winter months.

To donate to the cause, please use the just giving link below: https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/lycettsmovember?utm_term=MxbJXZPBZ

How much have you been impacted by Covid-19?

Luckily we have not be affected at all and are able to carry on our projects as usual.

What are you future hopes and aims for your charity?

To continue to do the work we have done since Sir Tom Cowie set up the Charitable Trust in 2002.

How can people find out more about your work?

Visit our website https://www.stcct.co.uk/index.php/