Housebuilder donates protective kit to local NHS

Regional housebuilder Persimmon Homes South West has stepped in to help the NHS by donating much-needed gloves and safety glasses.

Staff at Persimmon’s local office in Exeter have gathered all of the spare PPE normally used on building sites and handed it over to be utilised by doctors and nurses on the frontline as the battle against Covid-19 intensifies.

The equipment has been donated to the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital.

The NHS is in desperate need of all safety gear due to a global shortage, forcing some hospitals to try and source equipment independently to keep employees safe from infection.

Robert Hart, director in charge of Persimmon Homes South West, said: “I am delighted that we have been able to step up and donate this much-needed equipment.

“Our NHS is doing a tremendous job in this fight against coronavirus. We all appreciate the work the doctors and nurses are doing to look after people in need and we’re pleased that we can help in this small way. They deserve to be as protected as possible.”

Persimmon Homes has donated PPE equipment to hospitals right across the UK, from Scotland to Cornwall.

In order to protect the health of its employees, Persimmon has taken the decision to commence an orderly closedown of building work and temporarily close its sales offices across the country.

During the crisis, Persimmon is supporting groups which benefit people aged over-70 with £64,000 of grants every month through its Community Champions scheme.

Community Champions has run since 2015, giving away two grants of £1,000 in each of the company’s 32 operating regions every month.

It has been decided that the money will be targeted at over-70s groups for the foreseeable future.

Applications for Community Champions can be made at www.persimmonhomes.com/charity

Robert added: “Persimmon Homes is determined to do whatever we can to help the country through the difficult weeks and months ahead.”