A MITIE BOOST FOR SOUTHAMPTON 'S SCRATCH

More than 70 tonnes of scrap metal, worth over £15,000, and 572 litres of leftover paint has been donated by MITIE in the last year to help Southampton-based anti-poverty charity SCRATCH raise much-needed income and to help those in need.

The initiative involves giving the charity sorted scrap metal from kitchens and bathrooms being refurbished by MITIE for Southampton City Council and Thornhill Plus You, which enables SCRATCH (Southampton City and Region Action to Combat Hardship) to raise cash for ongoing projects.

MITIE has helped to make a difference over the last 12 months by:

•  Donating 72 tonnes of scrap metal, raising £15,116 for the charity. This is over 10% of SCRATCH's shortfall in funding, and is enough to buy 1,750 five-day food parcels for individuals in need. Recycling the metal has also saved this scrap from landfill.

•  Giving 572 litres of leftover paint. These have been distributed by SCRATCH to disadvantaged people and community groups to help spruce up local areas .

•  Donating a large transit van, which has been used by the charity for making scrap metal collections. 

•  Selling a van to the charity at a reduced market rate, saving SCRATCH around £3,000. The van has been used for collecting fruit and vegetables nearing the end of their shelf life from a local supermarket to give to families in need.  

SCRATCH aims to relieve the effects of poverty for needy families and individuals referred to the charity by providing clothes, food and furniture, and by refurbishing white goods to sell at a low cost. The charity's aims are a particularly good fit with the MITIE Property Services mission of making a difference to people's lives and its culture of improvement. 

Mike Smith, General Manager for SCRATCH, commented: “Receiving these items from MITIE has made a real difference to the individuals we help. Something simple, like leftover paint, can give a real boost to a community in need, and we have received letters from families saying what a huge difference these donations have made. There are massive financial and environmental benefits in recycling the scrap, too, so we are very pleased to be in partnership with MITIE.”

Andy Holder, Operations Manager from MITIE's branch in Southampton , commented: “Helping communities in need is very important to us. Our daily work is focused on raising standards of living by improving housing and urban spaces to benefit individuals and whole neighbourhoods, so our aims as a business fit well with those of SCRATCH. We are delighted to have made such an impact with the charity over the last year, and look forward to continuing the success in the coming years.”

Social housing specialists MITIE won the £22m, three year Better Homes kitchen and bathroom refurbishment contract last year. The programme has been implemented by Southampton City Council in partnership with Thornhill Plus You to improve council homes and communal areas across Thornhill.   MITIE is working on 2,036 homes, and so far over 1,005 properties have been refurbished to the required standard. MITIE's work on the contract also includes rewiring, general redecorating, installing CCTV, and replacing windows with anti-vandal glazing.

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Notes for editors:

About MITIE

MITIE is one of the UK 's leading support services companies, delivering facilities, engineering and property services to more than 6,000 public and private sector clients. It is also one of the UK 's largest employers with over 43,000 people supporting customers every day.

MITIE provides all of the facilities services that organisations may wish to outsource including Catering, Cleaning, Document Management, Front of House Services, Energy Services, Engineering Maintenance, Facilities Management, Landscaping, Grounds Maintenance, Pest Control, Security and Waste and Environmental Services. MITIE also offers engineering and property services, improving buildings for its customers by providing Building Refurbishment, Fit-Out and Maintenance Services, together with Mechanical & Electrical Engineering.

MITIE's unique share ownership ethos ‘Management Incentive Through Investment Equity' (MITIE) encourages our employees to focus on what our customers want. MITIE's success in delivering sustainable growth, through responsible and proactive engagement with stakeholders, has enabled the Group to become a FTSE 250 company, achieving annual revenues of over £1bn.

MITIE Property Services is the division within MITIE that specialises in the provision of maintenance and refurbishment services to both public and private sector customers.  Customers include commercial firms, local authorities, housing associations, banks and schools.

About SCRATCH

SCRATCH is a charitable company limited by Guarantee formed in October 1999. SCRATCH manages various social action projects that currently operate in Southampton and the surrounding area, one of which was started over 12 years ago by the founding charity Southampton City Mission. 

SCRATCH's current areas of operation include Southampton City , Eastleigh Borough, Waterside and Winchester city. The charity's mission statement is: to relieve the effects of poverty for families and individuals with needs recognised by approved referral agencies in Southampton and surrounding area.
 
Everyone who receives help from the one or more of the projects must be referred by one of the registered agencies (currently over 120 different organisations). SCRATCH relies on these agencies to assess the need for each referral they make.