This festive season, a heartwarming initiative called Pallets of Hope is set to brighten the lives of those facing hardship in Northamptonshire, thanks to a collaboration between Franklins Solicitors, Northants Food Reach, Hope Centre, and His Church charity.

The campaign’s goal aims to raise funds for a minimum of 11 pallets of food, warm clothing, and gifts, all destined for individuals and families in Northamptonshire who are in need. These essential supplies will be distributed during the festive season, ensuring that as many people as possible can enjoy a special Christmas.

The 11 pallets, packed with necessities such as food, warm clothes and gifts, will be dispatched to Hope Centre’s various locations across Northamptonshire by the end of November. Key delivery points include Hope Centre’s Homeless Centre at Oasis House and their Community Larders. Through the invaluable support of His Church, an emergency goods redistribution charity, each pallet can be secured with a £500 pallet administration donation, which includes delivery. Remarkably, each pallet carries a retail value of £2,500.

The Pallets of Hope campaign sets an ambitious fundraising target of a minimum of £5,500, which will enable them to secure and distribute all 11 pallets with a combined retail value of £27,500.

Kyra Williams, Marketing Manager at Hope Centre, expressed the urgency of this campaign, stating:

“Due to the rising cost of living, we have seen a drop in donations and, at the same time, an unprecedented increase in the demand for our services. This means that the support of local businesses and other community groups has never been more important, so that we can continue to help as many people as possible, particularly through these coming winter months.”

Andrea Smith, Equity Partner at Franklins Solicitors LLP, emphasised the power of collective action, saying:

 “We’re urging businesses to unite in this campaign to help ease the financial burden for struggling local families this Christmas. Through our partnership with His Church charity, we are able to secure pallets of essential household items for a fraction of the retail cost – meaning donations go much further.”

To make a difference and donate, visit https://www.justgiving.com/page/pallets-of-hope

 

 

Franklins Solicitors, a prominent legal firm with offices in Milton Keynes and Northampton areas, is excited to announce the launch of its annual charitable initiative – the Franklins £50 Challenge 2024. The challenge is set to take place from 20th February to 21st May 2024, and the firm is inviting local charities to step up and nominate themselves for the opportunity to be one of the six selected beneficiaries.

Currently, the line-up of supported charities includes two prominent organisations based in Milton Keynes – Willen Hospice and MK Act – along with two Northampton-based charities – Hope Centre and Cynthia Spencer Hospice. To complete the roster, Franklins Solicitors is looking to involve one more Milton Keynes-based charity and one more Northampton-based charity.

The Franklins £50 Challenge, now in its seventh year, represents a remarkable platform for local charities to collaborate with local businesses and community groups to raise vital funds for their services. This 2024 strapline, “Fighting hunger, fuelling wellness, changing local lives“, underpins the campaign’s commitment to making a meaningful impact on the community.

The essence of the £50 Challenge lies in its innovative fundraising approach. Each participating team receives an initial £50 seed funding from Franklins Solicitors, which they have three months to turn into substantial funds for their chosen charity. The campaign not only generates financial support but also raises awareness and engages the local community in driving positive change.

Since its inception in 2018, the Franklins £50 Challenge has successfully raised over £100,000 for local charities, showcasing the potential for collective efforts to bring about meaningful transformation.

Speaking about the decision to open the challenge up to more charities, Rosanna Stimson, Marketing Manager said:

‘Following the success of this years’ challenge, we received such positive praise from the charities who were involved and the teams who took part that we wanted to expand the opportunity so that more people could be supported by the campaign.

We’ve focused specifically on working with charities who are dedicated to helping those affected by the cost-of-living crisis or committed to improving health and wellbeing within our communities as these are issues that affect so many of us and numbers only continue to rise.’

For the 2024 campaign, Franklins Solicitors has expanded the opportunity for local charities to participate. Charities that are based in Milton Keynes or Northampton and are aligned with the campaign’s themes of addressing the cost-of-living crisis and promoting wellbeing are encouraged to apply.

Interested charities can submit their applications by emailing marketing@franklins-sols.co.uk  (you can also register your interest in entering a team to the same address).

Or if you prefer, charities can sign up here , and teams can sign up here.

The deadline for charity nominations is Friday, 29th September for eligible charities to express their interest in becoming a beneficiary.

The Franklins Solicitors LLP team, together with the 24 teams taking part in this year’s #Franklins50 challenge, celebrated last night (Wednesday 21 June) as they saw the total raised by the challenge since 2018 smash their £100,000 target.

£20,000 was raised this year and will provide the following support to each charity:

The small gathering, held at The Marriott Hotel in Northampton, brought together participating teams from across Northamptonshire and Milton Keynes, and the benefiting charities. Awards were given out for a variety of achievements this year.

  1. Top fundraiser for MK Act and overall: BWC Profiles – raised £3,000.
  2. Top fundraiser for Northampton Hope Centre: Louise from Miller & Chalk – raised £562.10
  3. Top fundraiser for Cynthia Spencer Hospice: Travis Perkins with £1,593.80.
  4. Top fundraiser for Willen Hospice: Team Bala from John Lewis – raised £2154.75.
  5. Small Business Superstar: Peter Bakare, Nutri Troops – raised £1,317.
  6. Best use of social media: Syncro for their launch video – raised £920.
  7. Most creative fundraising idea: dbfb Communications who produced, printed and sold their own cookbook featuring the favourite recipes of their staff, along with printed branded aprons – raised £625.
  8. Best community initiative: OneFourSix digital marketing hosted a BBQ serving breakfast and lunch for the second year running, which was promoted to local businesses – raised £800.
  9. Best example of teamwork: John Lewis Teams – their four teams – Odney, Ambleside, Leckford and Bala – competed against each other to raise a grand total of £5621.81.

The challenge required teams to take £50 seed funding from Franklins Solicitors LLP and turn it into as much money as possible over three months for their chosen charity – one of the   local charities taking part across Northamptonshire and Milton Keynes this year.

Andrea Smith, Partner at Franklins Solicitors LLP, said:

“It was a great evening to get everyone together to celebrate the achievements of the teams taking part this year but also exceeding the £100,000 raised since we began the challenge in 2018. This year we really want to help towards the current cost-of-living crisis and improving wellbeing. It’s great to see the difference the money raised will make to the local charities involved.“

Lolly Marlborough, Fundraising and Marketing Manager at MK Act, said:

“In total the Franklinks50 challenge has raised £4317 for MK Act and we’re so grateful to Franklins and everyone who took part at BWC Profiles, Nutri Troops and MK Softball. This money will make the hugest difference to MK Act, helping 104 men, women and children suffering domestic violence including paying for a trip to the seaside for the children in our refuge. It has been a really fun challenge and so great for team building and building connections.”

Louise Danielzuk from Northampton Hope Centre said:

“In a nutshell this money will mean people in Northampton no longer need to go hungry and the money raised will feed 750 hungry families. Every day we are hearing more stories of people unable to feed themselves, or families having to go without food because they simply cannot afford the food, or the fuel to cook it with. This money means that this no longer needs to be the story.”

If you would like to take part in the 2024 #Franklins50 challenge, please email marketing@franklins-sols.co.uk.

MK Food Reach, an initiative to support local people affected by food poverty, has delivered its first artic lorry load of items to MK Food Bank and Baby Basics.

Food bank delivery

Jonathan Hambleton, Managing Partner Freeths MK and Ruth Short, Legal Secretary

The lorry contained 26 pallets of essential food and supplies, worth an estimated retail value of £52,000.

Speaking about the donation, Louisa Hobbs at MK Food Bank said:

“This delivery has arrived at a perfect time for us. We have found that as the cost of living has gone up, donations have dropped. MK Food bank helps around 450 people a week with food parcels. We also distribute food to other charities who support homeless people and the elderly. Initiatives such as MK Food Reach are so helpful and allow us to continue tackling local food poverty. We thank all the businesses who have kindly donated so far.”

The MK Food Reach campaign was originally set up to help tackle rising food poverty resulting from the cost of living crisis. With an increase in families who are affected and fewer food donations from the general public, local food banks are struggling to keep up with demand.

MK Food Reach is a fundraising platform where businesses can donate money to help facilitate the delivery food pallets to charities in MK. The funds are sent directly to HIS Church, a food redistribution charity. For every £10,000 raised, an artic lorry load containing 26 pallets of food and essential supplies will be distributed to local charities in and around Milton Keynes.
Business who kindly donated to the first MK food Reach delivery include Cawleys, Freeths Solicitors LLP, Mazars, and 42 Consulting.

As well as making a generous donation, Cawleys kindly provided a lorry and driver to transport the goods from Lincolnshire to Milton Keynes. Anna Cawley, Strategy and Communications Director at Cawleys said:

“At Cawleys we have always believed it is important to support the local community. We know that MK Food Bank will be able to help hundreds of people with this donation and we’re delighted to get involved. I hope that other businesses will also show their support to continue this initiative in the future.”

Jonathan Hambleton, Managing Partner at Freeths Solicitors said:

“When I was approached and asked to consider supporting MK Food Reach I immediately knew that this was an initiative that Freeths should support. MK is a thriving business community, and Freeths is very much part of this, but life in MK is not easy for everyone at the moment. Freeths are pleased to be able to support MK Food Reach to deliver food to those who need it now. In addition to financial support, I was delighted that a number of Freeths’ staff have volunteered to work to support Food Reach —demonstrating a real commitment to the local community.”

MK Food Reach needs the support of the local business community to be able to continue delivering much needed food supplies to tackle food poverty in MK. To donate, visit: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/mk-food-reach 

Franklins Solicitors LLP is delighted to announce that their recent 40 Mile Challenge has raised £2741.25. The challenge was created to mark our 40th anniversary and participants were invited to do 40 miles of physical exercise over 40 days and raise a minimum of £40 each. The funds will be shared between local charities Willen Hospice , Cynthia Spencer Hospice and Macintyre. The challenge ran between 24th January – 13th March.

Challengers were able to complete their 40 miles through their choice of physical exercise. As well as traditional methods such as walking, running and cycling, some of the more unusual ways people chose to achieve this were through Zumba and skiing!

Rosanna Stimson, Marketing Manager at Franklins commented: ‘There was a real buzz around the challenge. We received lots of feedback from people who told us that it had encouraged them to get out and about on lunch breaks and use it as an opportunity to have walking meetings instead of sitting in an office.’

 Nigel Birch, Head of Marketing for Willen Hospice said: Congratulations to Franklins Solicitors LLP on their 40th Anniversary! It’s a great initiative to have organised the 40 mile challenge for their milestone year, and we’re thrilled that they have used the opportunity to make a difference to their local community. We have been privileged to work with Franklins Solicitors over many years and are grateful that they nominated us to benefit from their hugely successful 40 mile challenge. To the participants who pledged and the people who supported them – a massive thank you.”

 Also speaking about the challenge, Nina Gandy, Corporate Partnerships Fundraiser from Cynthia Spencer Hospice commented: ‘A huge thank you to everyone who took part in the 40 mile challenge and to the team at Franklins for coming up with such a great initiative too. Virtual challenges like this are still a fantastic way for participants to support good causes like Cynthia Spencer Hospice so that we can continue to care for patients and their families too. These challenges also bring teams together, as well as being great for wellbeing and mental health!’

Claire Kennedy, Head of Marketing  & Fundraising for MacIntyre added: ‘A big thank you to Franklins Solicitors for organising the Franklins 40 Mile Challenge, which proved to be a great way to get us out every day!  Every penny raised will benefit the children, young people and adults we support in the Milton Keynes area.‘

If you’d like to further support the challenge, you can still donate via this page: https://donate.giveasyoulive.com/fundraising/franklins-40-mile-challenge .

Macintyre has also set up a dedicated fundraising page https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/Franklins40MileChallengeForMacIntyre .

Franklins team from left to right – Simon Bannister, Minal Patel, Rosanna Stimson, Emma Taylor, Holly Threlfall and Justin Wilson.

This year is our 40th anniversary so we decided to start the year than with a challenge that marks the occasion, promotes health and fitness and raises money for some great local charities! Please join us as we embark on the Franklins 40 Mile Challenge.

 

What is the Franklins 40 Mile Challenge?

The challenge invites you to complete a distance of 40 miles of  physical exercise over 40 days. The type of exercise you do to achieve this is entirely up to you. You could run, walk, swim, cycle, dance, rock climb or do a combination of different exercises.  You might decide to do a mile a day or less frequent, longer distances – you can choose whatever works with your lifestyle.

 

When is the 40 Mile Challenge?

The challenge will run for 40 days, starting Tuesday 1st February 2022 and finishing 13th March 2022. However, you can join at any time during this period, as long as you’ve completed your 40 miles by the final date.

 

How much money do I need to raise?

In keeping with the 40 theme, we ask that each person taking part pledges to raise a very achievable minimum of £40 for their chosen charity.

The funds raised will be shared between three amazing following local charities:

• Willen Hospice: As the only adult care hospice in Milton Keynes, Willen hospice is run by local people for local people, delivering calm, compassionate care. They give patients who are coming to the end of their lives, specialist care in a friendly, peaceful environment, helping them and their loved ones to really make the most of their time left together.

• Cynthia Spencer Hospice: Provides specialist palliative care services for South Northamptonshire. They provide inpatient care, outpatient services, Wellbeing services, Hospice@Home, lymphoedema service and palliative care clinical nurse specialist service. They have two specialist Consultants in palliative medicine, a team of doctors and specialist nurses working within the Hospice and the community as well as in Northampton General Hospital and Danetre Hospital in Daventry.

• MacIntyre: Provides learning, support and care for more than 1,200 children, young people and adults who have a learning disability and / or autism.

 

How do I take part?

If you’d like to take part, it’s simple:

  1. Email marketing@franklins-sols.co.uk to let us know you’re taking part.
  2. Spread the word and invite your family, friends and colleagues to sponsor you via this link.

Alternatively you can set up your own fundraising page if you would prefer the full amount to go to one charity. You can ask sponsors to mention your name in their message of support when they donate.

  1. Email marketing@franklins-sols.co.uk to let us know once you’ve completed the challenge and how you did it. We’ll be looking out for the most unusual way of achieving the 40 miles and the most money raised.

Sharing your progress

Please share any photos on your social media channels using the hashtag #40MileChallenge . Good luck!

Between September and November, Franklins sponsored the £45 Accumulator Challenge to raise money for the Cynthia Spencer charity. This is where participating businesses take an initial investment of £45 and find ways to raise more money.

Participating businesses included Travis Perkins, Kilby Fox, Towergate Insurance Brokers, Chartwell Controls, Robyn Allen Solutions Ltd, Ballyhoo PR, Primark and Kingsley Roofing Services.

Fundraising activities ranged from cake baking to car washes to bingo to beard shaving! This was more challenging than in previous years because many people have been working remotely and there have been fewer gatherings.

In total, a brilliant £3,869.06 was raised. To put it into context, this could fund all of the following:

·         20 visits to a patient from a hospice at home nurse.

·         5 full days of care for one patient in the inpatient unit.

·         Resources for one child to start creating a memory box to remember a loved one.

·         Counselling session for a patient or their loved one to support them at a challenging time.

Thank you to everyone who took part and to the Cynthia Spencer fundraising team for organising. We look forward to getting involved with some more fundraising events next year!