Westerleigh Group ‘PROPs up’ Bristol charity with £5,000 gift

Christmas came early for a Bristol-based charity when it received a £5,000 donation from Westerleigh Group, which is headquartered just outside the city.

PROPS, which is based in Fishponds, supports adults with learning disabilities to achieve their full potential in the local community.

It does this by providing access to practical learning, skills development and accessible, work-based, experiences.

Westerleigh Group is the UK’s largest independent owner and operator of crematoria and cemeteries, with 37 sites in England, Scotland and Wales, all set within beautifully-landscaped gardens of remembrance which provide pleasant, peaceful places for people to visit and reflect.

Every year, the group donates many tens of thousands of pounds to charities, schools and other organisations which make a positive contribution to their local communities.

PROPS has been running for 21 years, supporting more than 50 trainees each week with a broad range of learning disabilities as well as many with physical disabilities.

Fundraising Manager Konna Beeson said: “Thank you so much to Westerleigh Group for their generous £5,000 donation.

“As a small charity supporting local adults with learning disabilities, this donation made a huge difference to our work by helping us to open our first café, and Bristol’s first disability-led brewery.

“Both projects are designed to train and employ local adults with learning disabilities, empowering them with opportunities they would usually face barriers to, and reducing the stigma that disabled people face.

“Thanks to Westerleigh, and the families who visit them, a legacy of inclusivity has been created and we are so grateful to Westerleigh for making this happen.

“Our trainees absolutely love working in the café.”

The Vassall Café is based in the Vassell Centre, Fishponds, where PROPS is based, together with other organisations. The café serves the building but is also open to the public.

The Tapestry Brewery in Totterdown is a bar as well as brewery and is open to the public on Fridays-to-Sundays from 12pm.

Jordan is just one of the PROPS trainees who works in the brewery. He said: "Before this opportunity, I was sat around doing nothing but now I am on a mission.”

It was Jennifer Farrow, Head of HR Operations at Westerleigh Group, who suggested that the organisation support PROPS.

She said: “As an HR professional, I am passionate about creating a diverse and inclusive working environment and culture and see that PROPS, with the excellent work they do to provide training and genuine employment opportunities for people with special educational needs and physical disabilities, fits hand in glove with my passion.

“I could see some of the initiatives which PROPS has – such as their café, which our donation has helped to make a reality, and their allotment project – are areas which Westerleigh Group is passionate about, as we have our own hospitality suites and an exceptional horticulture team, providing unrivalled environments for the families who use our crematoria and cemeteries.

“For me, the choice was easy to propose PROPS as a recipient for some funds raised throughout our metal recycling schemes, given our shared values and passion for inclusivity.”