Emma Wilson raised over £200 for St Ann’s Hospice in Heald Green by selling items created on her course by herself and her peers.
Emma started her fundraising by selling unused materials from the programme that would otherwise have been thrown away, raising £140 for the hospice, before joining them at their Summer Fair to sell items created by learners.
Emma said: “We had seven birdboxes, 10 planters and a toolbox that were made in class but not wanted because people didn’t have the space for them and we all agreed that we couldn’t just throw them away because that would be a waste so we decided to donate to a charity, and I suggested St Ann’s Hospice.
“So I got in touch with St Ann’s to see if they wanted them as they’d recently been in touch about raising money for their new centre, but they suggested that I come along to their summer fair to sell them.
“I tidied them up ready to sell, sanding them down and painting them, but didn’t remale anything. On the day I explained that they had been made by adult learners at the Growth Company on the Multi-Trade Skills Course, and may people were interested to find out more. We sold every birdbox and almost every planter raising around £75.”
The money raised by Emma will support the Hospice’s appeal to raise money for a new purpose-built hospice for the people of Greater Manchester.
Julie Peters, Community Fundraiser at St Ann’s Hospice, said: “St Ann’s Hospice would like to say a big thank you to the Growth Company for supporting our Summer Fair, it was great to have Emma Wilson along donating her time to sell birdboxes and planters made by learners to raise funds for the New Hospice Appeal. The event was really successful, everyone enjoyed the day and we’ve received some great feedback on what a lovely day it was. I’m also really pleased to share that the St Ann’s Summer Fair raised a fantastic £4340!”
After being diagnosed with trigeminal neuralgia in May last year, Emma had to leave her office-based job and retrain in a completely different career. She enrolled on the Skills Bootcamp in Construction Multi-Trade, which she completed in April.
Emma said: “It seems a bit weird to be retraining at 52 because I had a really good career in something I loved but my work involved analysing huge sets of data and staring at screens all day which I just can’t do any more as it sets off migraines, so I had to look at another career, and I’ve always thought about being a plumber.”
Speaking about the programme, Emma added: “The course was great because it gives you lots of different skills, but I loved the plumbing units most, and I felt I was good at them so it’s definitely what I want to do. I’ve gained skills in tiling, plumbing and joinery and this all means that I’m confident I could complete a full bathroom renovation.”
Emma is now planning to start a plumbing course in September to continue developing her skills.
To find out more about our Construction programmes, visit our website.
