Sintons supports good causes
From cleaning windows, to tending gardens and decorating new buildings, staff at Sintons are always willing to lend a hand in the community.
Over the past few months, these have been just some of the tasks volunteers from the Newcastle law firm have undertaken to help support good causes in the North East, and to benefit local communities and people living within them.
Through assigning 80 days of staff time each year to carrying out tasks to benefit good causes and support North East communities, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) commitment is something that Sintons takes very seriously.
Recent projects to benefit from the assistance of Sintons volunteers are Grace House North East Children’s Hospice in Sunderland, Craigielea Nursing Home in Gateshead, and BusyBodies Nusery in Fencehouses.
In addition to the voluntary work, each year Sintons’ staff select an annual charity to be the focus of fundraising efforts. Last year, over £7,000 was raised for the Charlie Bear Cancer Appeal. The charity for 2013 is Down’s Syndrome North East, which was chosen to support one member of staff whose son has Down’s Syndrome, and whose family have benefitted greatly from the charity’s assistance.
The most recent project Sintons were involved in was at Craigielea Nursing Home in Gateshead, which provides accommodation for elderly people who require nursing, residential or dementia care. To help prepare for the home’s summer fair, four lawyers from Sintons helped with gardening at the venue, which has been at the heart of the local community for over 70 years.
Susan Jones, Chief Executive at Craigielea Care, said: “I think many of our residents who were watching from the windows were astounded to find out that the gardening was being done by a highly skilled and qualified legal team I think it made their day. We all agree that it’s full marks to Sintons for their community spirit and willingness to tackle projects such as this on a voluntary basis, and we are certainly very glad that they chose to come to spend the day with us at Craigielea and support this charity.”
At Grace House, three of Sintons’ staff helped clean the windows of the facility, which will provide a ‘home from home’ for very sick children across the North East and will offer support to their families. The hospice, which will provide much-needed accommodation for six children, is due to open later this year.
Also on Wearside, a team of six people from Sintons helped with decorating BusyBodies Nursery in Fencehouses, ahead of its opening in September. The nursery is expanding into a new purpose built facility to offer childcare for pre-school age children throughout the day.
Alongside the one off community projects, Sintons and its staff are also keen participants in the Right to Read initiative, the national campaign to help raise literacy standards in schools.
Amanda Maskery, Partner at Sintons and Chair of the firm’s CSR committee, said: “Our charitable and community work is something we are absolutely committed to, and is something our staff genuinely enjoy and want to be involved with.
“Sintons has been part of the North East community for over 100 years, and we recognise the importance a firm like ours can and should have. We are very pleased to be able to help out with such valuable work and it shows we certainly aren’t afraid to get our hands dirty!”
In addition to the valuable community work Sintons carries out, and charitable donations it makes, the firm is a one of the leaders in its field in the North East in acting for charities. Charity clients in the region include the JGW Patterson Foundation, Percy Hedley Foundation and the Virgin Mary Trust. Sintons also works with Auckland Castle Trust owner of historic Auckland Castle and oversaw the development of the multi-million pound Gurdwara Temple in the west end of Newcastle, and continues to work with the charity and its trustees.
