On 14th April, Theresa Villiers, MP for Chipping Barnet, visited the Sainsbury’s New Barnet store to meet the colleagues and hear about the work they do with their Local Charity Partner and their community plans for 2014.
Teenage Cancer Trust was announced back in June as the store's Local Charity partner, following customer votes in May. As part of Sainsbury’s on-going support, the store have raised over £650 by holding fundraising events such as bag packing, carol singing and collections in store.
The store also works with The Boxmore Trust, who look after, rear and train carriage horses. Three times a week surplus produce from the bakery is donated to reduce food waste. The Deputy Store Manager, Steve Berkeley, then discussed Active Kids with Theresa and how the return of the scheme will see Sainsbury’s invest millions to help children lead healthier, more active lifestyles. Fronted by ambassadors David Beckham and Ellie Simmonds, over 100 new cookery and nutrition toolkits have been added to the range of sports and cooking equipment on offer for schools, Scouts and Guide groups and clubs. Last year in Barnet £655,085 worth of equipment was donated. Customers can collect vouchers in-store until May 20th.
Theresa Villiers MP, said: “It was great to meet the deputy store manager Steve Berkeley and his colleagues at Sainsbury’s New Barnet and hear about their fundraising efforts for Teenage Cancer Trust. I was particularly interested in the launch of the Active Kids scheme. I know it helps many of the children in Barnet lead more active lifestyles”.
“Encouraging children to lead more active lives not only helps them maintain a healthy weight and build strong muscles and bones, but is also proven to help increase self confidence and interpersonal skills. I look forward to keeping in touch with this project and seeing how it develops.”
“Sainsbury’s are an important part of the community in New Barnet and I was interested to discuss with colleagues and management the role the store can play as part of efforts to regenerate the area.”
Steve Berkeley, Deputy Store Manager at Sainsbury’s New Barnet added: “It was a pleasure to welcome Theresa Villiers MP to our store and be given the opportunity to show her how dedicated we are to helping out in the local community.”