Green-fingered staff from Vistry help out at hospice garden in Stoke-on-Trent

Green-fingered Vistry employees gave up their own time to help tidy up gardens at a hospice in Stoke-on-Trent.

Green-fingered Vistry employees gave up their own time to help tidy up gardens at a hospice in Stoke-on-Trent.

Four members of staff from housebuilder Vistry Mercia, which has its regional head office in Stafford, volunteered to work on the gardens at Douglas Macmillan Hospice’s children’s site in Grace Road, Trentham.

The Vistry team – Freya Halsall, regional marketing manager, Steph Martin, regional management accountant, Rebecca Curzon, sales consultant, and buyer Natalie Kyte – spent the day in the garden. The helpers weeded the garden, dug in and laid mulch onto the flower beds, and picked up litter.

Douglas Macmillan Hospice, which first opened in 1973 and is known locally as Dougie Mac, provides specialist care services for adults, young adults and children who are facing life-limiting conditions. Following the amalgamation of the hospice with the Donna Louise Children’s Hospice in March 2021, care is provided at two hospice sites in Blurton and Trentham, as well as in people’s own homes.

The hospice supports families across Stoke-on-Trent, North Staffordshire and the surrounding villages, while the children’s service reaches out to families across Staffordshire and South Cheshire. 

Julia Lowe, volunteer services co-ordinator from the hospice, said: “We’re so grateful to Vistry Mercia for their continued support for Dougie Mac. The garden and playground of our children’s services is a well-loved part of the hospice as it is fully accessible for wheelchair users, which means children of all ages and abilities can play together. The team worked so hard to get the space ready for summer and it’s looking great. 

“As an independent charity we rely hugely on the support of the local community, not only financially but also with the time they give through volunteering. Our army of dedicated volunteers support all areas of the organisation and without them we simply couldn’t do what we do, which is why we’re so grateful to businesses like Vistry Mercia for the time they give to support Dougie Mac.”

Freya Halsall, regional marketing manager at Vistry Mercia, said: “The Douglas Macmillan Hospice is an amazing facility which offers a calm and caring place where people who are trying to deal with very difficult circumstances are looked after and treated with the utmost respect and love.

“The hospice is less than 15 miles from our head office in Stafford, so we feel a connection as it is a local charity operating across the region. I was lucky enough to help out there last year and it was a real pleasure to be able to go along again this year. 

“Hospice staff tell us that the garden is a very important area because it gives them a peaceful outdoor space where they can take children of all ages to let off steam and enjoy a breath of fresh air in the sunshine. We did a lot of weeding and picking up of litter and it was really rewarding to be able to look back at the end of the day and actually see how much tidier the garden looked after our efforts.” 

To get to know more about the work of the Douglas Macmillan Hospice, visit dougiemac.org.uk.