This Christmas, 280 children and young people from Bargeddie have received a little extra from Santa, thanks to donations from Boots colleagues from the West of Scotland.

Boots colleagues have joined together to give a gift to every single one of the 280 children who attend The Safety Zone by organising a ‘shoebox Santa’ event. The boxes were stuffed to the brim with carefully selected goodies, toys and treats, and Santa gave them out at the children’s Christmas party last week.

Children supported by the Safety Zone receive their gifts from Santa

The young people all attend The Safety Zone Community Project in Bargeddie, which is a rural community in North Lanarkshire, recognised as having few amenities and listed as an area of multiple deprivations. The Safety Zone gives a safe place in the local community where young people aged 2 – 17 can develop, grow, play and socialise.

The Manager at The Safety Zone, said: “We’ve been quite overwhelmed by the support from all of the colleagues from Boots UK from across the region, who have put their time and money into making sure that our young people have a happier Christmas. It’s been quite a logistical feat, but we are all extremely grateful for the effort Boots colleagues have made.  Bargeddie is a rural village and offers few opportunities for young people within the community. We work so hard to ensure that these young people have a safe and happy place where they can meet to grow and develop and which gives them the confidence to reach their full potential. It’s donations like these, which can really give everyone a boost and can help make a real difference.”

Lesley Douglas, Customer Experience Manager for Boots UK in the West of Scotland, comments: “Throughout the year, our store teams in the area have been working together with local BBC Children in Need projects like The Safety Zone, where they can offer their support – not only by fundraising, but also by committing time and expertise – tea making, fence painting, and or giving health and beauty tutorials. This Christmas, we wanted to join together to do something significant for one of our local community projects. The thought that we’ve been able to help give each of the children at The Safety Zone a little bit of a merrier Christmas, feels very special.”

Boots colleagues from Glasgow East. Left – right: Bal Sagoo, Area Manager, Nicola Euart, Store Manager, Lisa Aikman, Store Manager, Michael McMillan, Store Manager, lined up to support the party.

The children had their own Christmas party on Tuesday last week, where there was music and fun, and Santa delivered all of the presents.

As an official partner of BBC Children in Need, Boots UK was able to introduce its colleagues to a number of projects across Scotland funded by the Charity. These included The Safety Zone Project which has received more than £260,000 in funding since 1999, and is one of some 2,500 projects which the Charity currently funds across the UK.

 

ENDS

For more information, please contact Bethan Simmons at the Boots UK press office on 0115 959 1188 or Bethan.Simmons@boots.co.uk.

 

About Boots UK

Boots UK (boots.com), the UK’s leading pharmacy-led health and beauty retailer, is part of the Retail Pharmacy International Division of Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (Nasdaq: WBA), the first global pharmacy-led, health and wellbeing enterprise.  With 2,510* stores in the UK, Boots UK is committed to providing exceptional customer and patient care, be the first choice for pharmacy and healthcare and offer innovative 'only at Boots' exclusive products such as the UK’s leading skincare brand No7, all delivered with the great value customers love. Created over 165 years ago, the Boots brand is still at the heart of the communities it serves.

*As at 31 August 2015 excluding equity method investments

 

About BBC Children in Need

The BBC Children in Need Appeal is a charity registered in England and Wales (802052) and Scotland (SC039557) whose aim is to make a positive change to the lives of disadvantaged children and young people across the UK.

BBC Children in Need’s vision is that every child in the UK has a safe, happy and secure childhood and the chance to reach their potential.  We will realise this vision by supporting, promoting and publicising work that addresses the challenges that children and young people face and work that builds their skills and resilience.

We are currently supporting 2,500 projects that are working with children facing a range of disadvantages for example, poverty and deprivation; children who have been the victims of abuse or neglect or disabled young people.