Tesco customers deliver Bags of Help for Armed Forces groups in Plymouth

Tesco customers in Plymouth have helped deliver a funding boost to three community groups which support serving personnel, veterans and their families.

The groups seAp (Support, Empower, Advocate and Promote), Scotty's Little Soldiers and Improving Lives Plymouth were all selected as recipients of a grant from the supermarket’s Bags of Help initiative.

The scheme, run in partnership with Groundwork, sees funding awarded to thousands of local community projects every year.

In this special round of voting, groups supporting the Armed Forces in 17 locations across the UK were given the chance to share in £100,000.

Customers voted in their thousands for their favourite project using a token given to them at the check-out each time they shopped.

The final results in Plymouth can now be revealed.

Scotty's Little Soldiers was awarded with the top prize of £4,000, while Improving Lives Plymouth won £2,000 and seAp (Support, Empower, Advocate and Promote) received £1,000.

Scotty’s Little Soldiers founder, Nikki Scott said: “On behalf of Scotty’s Little Soldiers, I want to say a huge thank you for the support from the Tesco initiative. Bags of Help is such a good idea and it’s through vital fundraising activity like this that allows us to continue to support our members, bereaved Armed Forces children who need us.”

Debbie Westlake, Lead for the Military Advocacy Service said: “We are thrilled to have the opportunity to reach more veterans and their families. Encourage more volunteers to support the valuable work we do in the local community. Thank you.”
Alec Brown, Head of Community and Local Communications at Tesco, said: “At Tesco we are very proud of our long association with Armed Forces. Bags of Help is a campaign which responds to the needs of local communities and supports groups which help change lives.

“Our servicemen and women make great sacrifices not just for the communities to have benefitted from this special round of voting but in communities across the UK and beyond.

“It’s a real privilege to award these groups a Bags of Help grant and we are very much looking forward to seeing how the funds are put into action helping serving men and women and their families.”

Graham Duxbury, Groundwork’s National Chief Executive, said: “We look forward to seeing these projects, in which local groups address the needs of serving personnel and veterans, come to life and support the wider community.”

Bags of Help grants of £4,000, £2,000 and £1,000 are available every two months in each of the 575 local voting regions across England Scotland and Wales.
Find out more about the scheme at www.tesco.com/bagsofhelp