A charity helping elderly and vulnerable residents to secure their homes against burglars is £7000 better off after being named Hopkins Homes’ Cambridgeshire Charity of the Year.
Yesterday Hopkins Homes announced that the Bobby Scheme had won the competition, which invites members of the public to vote for their favourite local charity.
The Ely Foodbank and the Huntingdonshire Area Money Advice Service came second and third in the vote and will receive £2,000 and £1,000 respectively.
The campaign received more than 2,300 votes from Cambridgeshire residents who chose their favourite charity from a shortlist of six.
A £10,000 donation from Hopkins Homes will be shared between the three charities receiving the most votes.
Additionally, Hopkins Homes will donate £250 to each of the three remaining charities – Emmaus Cambridge, Cambridge Street Aid and YMCA Cambridgeshire & Peterborough – in recognition of the excellent work they carry out across the region.
The Cambridgeshire Police Shrievalty Trust has been running the Bobby Scheme in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough since 2001 and helped secure the homes of over 25,000 residents.
The Bobby Scheme provides a service for older, vulnerable, disabled people by improving their home security, to reduce crime, reduce fear of crime and increase independence, confidence and feelings of safety.
The scheme also secures the homes of domestic abuse victims.
Shirley Simpson of The Bobby Scheme said: “We are over the moon to win the public vote.
“The £7,000 will be a real boost for the charity and an acknowledgement of the valuable work we do helping vulnerable people in our community.
“We are currently raising funds to replace our Bobby van and the donation will help us with this cause significantly.
“We are very grateful to Hopkins Homes for including us in the vote and we have enjoyed this opportunity to further raise awareness of our work in the area.”
James Hopkins, Executive Chairman of Hopkins Homes said: “We are delighted with the level of local engagement that the vote received. All six of the shortlisted charities offer support and assistance to some of the region’s most vulnerable residents and we are proud that our donations will help them to continue the fantastic work they do across Cambridgeshire.
“Hopkins Homes is committed to building strong communities as well as providing beautiful new homes across the region, we hope that the charities continue to thrive and we look forward to hearing more about the work they do.”
The award-winning house builder is working on a number of developments across the area including in Ely, Burwell and Soham.
