latest sponsorship

Funding for Woking First Responder

Greenoak have sponsored Chris Rumsey to help complete his training to be a Woking First Responder.

The Woking Community First Responders are an award winning team of volunteers who are trained to respond to medical emergency calls through the 999 system, in conjunction with the Ambulance Service. Based within the community of Woking, they are able to attend the scene of an emergency in a very short time, often within the first few minutes and ahead of the Ambulance. The First Responder can then begin vital life-saving treatment, further increasing the patient’s chance of survival. Since its inception in 2009, the team has attended over 2,500 medical emergencies in Woking, including incidents such as cardiac arrests, heart attacks, strokes and seizures.

Greenoak previously sponsored a new First Responder back in 2010. Woking Team Leader Simon Ramm said, “The Greenoak Housing Association have been a strong supporter of our team for many years now. Our scheme is run on an entirely voluntary basis and so relies on generous donations like these to function. Back in January this year, a defibrillator that was earlier sponsored by Greenoak was used to successfully resuscitate an elderly male in Woking who suffered a cardiac arrest – the equipment was literally a lifesaver! Greenoak’s sponsorship of Chris will enable our team to increase our coverage in Woking, helping us to assist more residents who are in need”.

Chris Rumsey lives in Goldsworth Park in Woking and has been training for the role since last November. He passed his second round of assessments in April 2016, becoming qualified to attend emergency incidents as a solo First Responder. He was immediately issued with his new equipment and has since provided 55 hours of on-call cover, attending 11 emergency incidents to date.

The Woking Mayor’s Picture a Story Awards

Greenoak Community Focus provided £25 worth of book vouchers to each of the ten winners of the Woking Mayor’s unique reading competition ‘Picture a Story’.

Each week since March, Derek McCrum read a short story on Radio Woking, based at The Winston Churchill School, which was available to download as a podcast, and invited children aged between seven and nine years old to draw or paint a picture inspired by the story. Parents were then asked to capture the picture and send it to the Mayor by email.

Every week he chose the three best entries, which were published in the News & Mail. A winners party was held in May in the Hilton DoubleTree in Woking where Greenoak’s Housing Manager presented the prizes to the delighted winners.

The competition was supported by the charity Let’s Read, which provides schools with professionally trained volunteers who offer one-on-one help to children who have reading difficulties.

Mr McCrum, whose term as Mayor came to an end on 19 May, said: “I’d like to congratulate not only the winners, but everyone who took the time to discover their creativity, and of course recognise the support local businesses have shown. It is truly astonishing and shows just what can be achieved.”

Greenoak funds works at the Lighthouse

The Lighthouse is an exciting venture which operates as a base for a variety of projects serving the community. The aim is to revive hope and restore dignity through practical support, life-skills training, counselling, and a food bank.

The project was initiated by Woking Vineyard Church who acquired a 4 floor derelict building situated in Woking town centre, with the vision to restore it. The renovation works are being achieved by many volunteers from the community, including members of local rehabilitation groups. Work was about to
stall as extra security was needed to protect workers and the building. Greenoak Housing Association stepped into the breach and provided £2,500 to fund a new set of entry doors. These have replaced the old swing doors.

Project Manager, Mark Richmond, said, "thanks to Greenoak Housing, the new front doors and shutters will provide us with security and draught protection. This is particularly important to Woking's Food bank, due to be launched in the new year, and Jigsaw Clothes and Toys for under Fives as
they plan their outreach programmes. The donation allows us to take another step towards the social enterprise ventures for the 1st and 2nd Floors of our Lighthouse building."

Mark added that donations for the Food bank included a breathtaking 8 tons of food from shoppers at local Tesco and Waitrose supermarkets, West Byfleet Infant and Junior schools and several independent groups ready to provide crisis food supplies to local people in need.