Aico pledge their continued support to local communities
Aico’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives are set to continue this year, as they strive to support local communities in Shropshire and beyond. Throughout 2021, Aico in the Community will focus on helping young people to tackle prevalent issues such as deprivation, education and mental health. Aico will support several local organisations, charities and schools through donations and volunteering.
In January, Aico pledged to contribute £7,500 to The Alexandra Assessment Centre, a division of The Alexandra Community Primary School, Wrexham. The Centre supports children aged three to seven with additional learning needs. Their mission is to provide tailored support for each child through Speech and Language Therapy, Physiotherapy and more. Aico’s donation will assist the Centre with the upgrade of its yard spaces with bespoke, high-quality sensory equipment that will play a critical role in the pupils’ development. Rebecca Curtis, a teacher at The Assessment Centre added, “Wrexham Assessment Centre is a Specialist Provision within Alexandra CP School that serves the whole of Wrexham County. The children’s needs are varied and often complex, so a large team of dedicated staff work in partnership with families and other agencies to determine children’s current and future needs, offering a high level of support and excellent learning opportunities. We are extremely excited and grateful for Aico giving us the opportunity to carry out renovations and we feel these changes will be hugely beneficial for our wonderful children.”
The Alexandra Assessment Centre are planning to create a vibrant, challenging, fun and safe learning environment for the children, through the renovation of the yards to create three purpose-built play areas. With one based around water play, another based around sand play and the third having a musical sensory theme, the yards will have equipment to encourage physical development, opportunities to explore a wide range of sensory materials and also provide opportunities to practice essential skills such as turn taking, coordination skills and social skills.
Aico have also worked with Homestart to support a local family. Homestart assists families to ensure children have the best possible start in life. The charity helps with a variety of issues such as mental health, financial issues, disabilities and isolation. Homestart connected Aico to a family in Telford, Shropshire and Aico were able to assist in creating a brand-new bedroom for their daughter. Furniture was donated from the education and demonstration facility, Ember Place, at the company’s previous headquarters. The unit replicated a modern home and included a young girl’s bedroom fitted with a bed, furniture, and accessories that have now been put to good use with a local family.
Jane Pritchard, Community Liaison at Aico comments “We’re so pleased to be able to continue our work with local communities. All our CSR projects aim to make a difference, create safer communities and contribute to sustainable futures. That is why we want to work with children and young adults to ensure they have the resources and support they need for a better quality of life. We’re so proud of the work we do and we look forward to making a positive contribution to our local communities and their residents in 2021.”
Aico will utilise their CSR programme to provide continuous support to their communities throughout the year, as well as engaging in regular charity and fundraising events. This includes a commitment to The Movement Centre, an Oswestry-based charity dedicated to the treatment of children with movement disabilities, to participate in their ‘Sponsor a Child’ campaign.
