Nicol & Co.’s Community Fund tops £50,000 for local causes
The Community Fund of Worcestershire independent estate agent Nicol & Co. has topped £50,000.
Nicol & Co., which has offices in Droitwich, Worcester and Malvern, began the scheme in 2021, giving £12,000 to local community groups in its first year.
The firm provided twice as much support in 2022, with a total of £24,900 and has donated another £13,200 so far this year.
Managing director Matt Nicol, who founded the business in 2009, said: “Helping people buy and sell homes, I’ve always felt rooted in our community and this motivates me to make a difference wherever possible.
“I spearheaded a crowdfunding effort in 2014 that saw £16,500 raised to rebuild a children’s play area in The Lido Park in Droitwich after an arson attack and it’s always good to see families still having great time there nearly ten years on.
“More recently we donated £100 to the Worcestershire Acute Hospitals Trust for every instruction that signed up during the Coronavirus pandemic and gave Amazon tablets to three local primary schools to support online and remote learning.”
This lead to the establishment of the Nicol & Co. Community Fund which has now donated over £50,000 to community organisations and projects across the county.
Matt added: “We established the fund to make a difference across Worcestershire and now, for every property we sell, we offer to donate £100 to the school or local community organisation of our seller’s choice.
“The fund exists to help local schools, projects and initiatives in and around Worcester, Droitwich and Malvern that our clients care about, and we do too.
“Sometimes our vendors leave the choice to us and therefore we welcome applications for support from perhaps the less well-known local organisations via our website or email using [email protected]
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So far, the Community Fund has helped a wide range of beneficiaries including schools, community groups and local animal charities, alongside the more familiar Worcestershire Homeless Appeal, the foodbanks in Droitwich, Worcester and Malvern, Acorns and St Richard’s Hospice and the Grace Kelly Childhood Cancer Trust.
Another one of Nicol & Co.’s successful initiatives, earlier this year, was the Big Worcestershire Garage Sale with more than 30 streets signing up to join together to declutter their homes and sell unwanted items as part of a mass event.
Matt said: “This was so successful for the first attempt that we aim to repeat it every year now. Our community involvement will always be an essential ingredient in our business model – it’s in our DNA.”
