The remarkable efforts of GroceryAid’s Scottish committee are having a direct impact on the number of industry colleagues the charity is able to support north of the border.
Once largely unknown in Scotland, the GroceryAid charity has been revitalised in recent years under the joint Chairmanship of Peter Steel and Jim Harper, ably supported by an ever-growing Scottish Committee representing all facets of the food and drink retailing sector in Scotland.
After years of raising little or no funds north of the border, the new-look GroceryAid Scotland has continued to move through the gears with a series of fantastic initiatives, including the flagship Checkout Scotland music festival.
The outstanding news is that the team has now broken the £100,000 fundraising barrier for the first time – and plans are well underway to build on that success in the future.
Even more important, the Committee’s efforts mean that more colleagues than ever in the Scottish convenience and grocery retailing industry are benefitting from the financial, practical and emotional support that GroceryAid offers, entirely free of charge.
Growing demand
The increased fundraising achievements are more welcome and necessary than ever thanks to the legacy of the pandemic – but the work of the Committee has also meant greater awareness of the charity and how it can support colleagues in need of a little help.
Joint Chairman Peter Steel said: “There’s no doubt that the economic challenges we all face are playing a part in the growth in demand for the support that GroceryAid can offer. But we also believe that the efforts of the Scottish Committee over the last few years in raising awareness of the charity up here in Scotland have meant that more industry colleagues now know they have somewhere to turn to when they need some support, in whatever way that may be.”
GroceryAid CEO Kieran Hemsworth revealed at a recent meeting of the Committee that the charity had seen a 56% increase in the instances of support in the six months from April to September.
Thanks to the efforts of fundraisers, the charity has been able to rise to the challenge. For example, GroceryAid was able to provide a £150 School Essentials Grant in June last year to 15% more parents and carers than the previous year.
Hemsworth also said that there had been a 338% increase in people seeking business debt advice – a service that GroceryAid offers for free to independent local retailers – highlighting the fact that it is not just individual colleagues who are facing tough challenges.
