Feedback is a Gallagher Group initiative via which both company and employees undertake to help in our local community. This takes many forms - volunteers, charitable donations, utilising group skills, materials and machinery.
In recent times Gallagher has helped:
The Heart of Kent Hospice, Wrotham Pavilion, Aylesford Bulls Rugby Club, Maplesden Noakes School Sports Hall project, Kent County Showground, Maidstone Hospital, Ryarsh C P School, Kent Wildlife Trust, Blackthorn Trust (Medical Charity), Demelza House Childrens Hospice, Leybourne Riding for the Disabled and the Lighthouse Club.
Gallagher is pleased to support the Allington Millennium Green Trust.
Allington Millennium Green is a quiet oasis next to Cloudberry Close, and it is both a refuge for nature and a place of relaxation. It has a huge diversity of wild plants, and it is the richest habitat in this busy suburban area.
The Green is maintained by local volunteers with practical and financial assistance from many organisations and businesses.
Gallagher has donated materials and labour to help construct the new Wrotham Pavilion. Work has begun and villagers are looking forward to its completion in September.
The council took the decision to build from scratch rather than plough money into trying to repair the existing pavilion that was built around 1949. Gallagher was pleased to be able to help the council and villagers to achieve their dream of having a brand new pavilion for the village.
Gallagher has donated three tonnes of Kentish Ragstone to the Demelza Hospice for Children. The Kentish Ragstone was used by a team of eight unemployed people to repair a wall at the hospice in Sittingbourne.
The eight young people aged between 16 and 18 spent two weeks at the hospice rebuilding the wall, doing ground clearance, weeding, digging and other gardening work. The result has been a much improved garden for the children and their families who are cared for by the hospice.
The eight young people worked at the Demelza Hospice as part of a 12 week Prince’s Trust Team Programme which helps young people to improve their skills, confidence and job prospects.
A letter we recently received regarding Gallagher's ongoing work on the regeneration of Mote Park underlines the work ethic of our site teams:
"As a regular dog walker in Mote Park, I would like to commend all your construction workers on their politeness, cheerfulness, tidiness, and particularly on the care they take when driving near pedestrians and dogs."
At Gallagher, we regularly help people, causes and charities in the Maidstone area. A letter we recently received sums this up:
"Just a short note to acknowledge grateful receipt of your most generous cheque for £2,000 towards …
"I have been overwhelmed by the incredible support you have given to this project and for the practical help you are giving."
"Please give my personal thanks and regards to Pat who, generous as ever, still supports so many of the activities in and around Maidstone – most anonymously and without advertisement"
Gallagher Aggregates Ltd was recently pleased to be help the Citizens Advice Bureau in Maidstone by donating the aggregates for their new car park.
The Citizens Advice Bureau, based on the Tonbridge Road in Maidstone, originally had parking for 12 cars, but only if they tripled parked. This inevitably led to a game of musical cars every day when staff needed to leave. The Bureau's outgoing Chairman, Mr Barrett Manning, wanted to provide more parking space for the staff and was determined to complete the process before he retired. This was no easy process as permission was needed from the landlord to extend the car park into the garden and planning permission had to be granted from the council. Plus there was a further process as two yew trees in the garden were covered by a 'Tree Protection Order' so the go ahead had to be granted from the Borough Landscape Officers.
After two years of hassle and hard work, planning permission was finally granted and work was able to begin... Read full story
We are most grateful to GALLAGHER who, in response to our appeal for sponsorship, donated an amount sufficient to cover the cost of printing and programmes for the Christmas Concert.
Gallaghers is one of the largest privately owned building, civil engineering, quarrying and property businesses in Kent. They have made generous donations to many local good causes, including The Heart of Kent Hospice, which MCU have chosen to support this season. It was very pleasing that at our concert on January 6th the sum of £1017.71 was raised on the hospice’s behalf, with which they are extremely pleased.
The Ronald McDonald House at Guys' Hospital follows a long tradition of providing a comfortable and supportive "home from home" for the families of seriously ill children. The House is run by an independent children's charity, The Evelina Family Trust and relies on fundraising and donations. Gallagher are pleased to support RG Group in such a worthwhile cause. Andy Vining - Project Manager for RG Group (left) and Ken Baillie - Director for Gallagher Limited
Antony Gormley’s first public work, a 9 tonne granite boulder and a bronze cast of it, (which sits alongside), has overlooked Singleton Lake in Ashford since 1979. But the sculpture has suffered serious damage over the years and Kent County Council (KCC) decided it needed to be sent to specialists in Telford for major restoration.
Gallagher volunteered specialist staff and equipment to lift and transport the sculpture on behalf of KCC. Using a crane and hydraulic lifting equipment, the Gallagher team hoisted the two-piece sculpture from its position by the lake and onto the lorry that was to take it to Shropshire.
The Gormley sculpture will have a new home at Ashford station when it returns in the Spring so in its place, Gallagher offered to donate two similar sized ragstone boulders selected from its quarry in Barming.
The boulders have been put into position by the lake and are ideal for climbing and sitting on.
Pat Gallagher, chairman of the Maidstone based Gallagher Group said: “We are delighted to help Kent County Council with the restoration of this internationally important sculpture...”. Read full story
The motorbike riders of SERV (Service by Emergency Rider Volunteers) are the unsung heroes of the medical world, delivering urgent blood and blood products to the A&E units across Kent.
Jamie Reeves is one such rider, by day a head gamekeeper and then in his spare time, in all weathers day or night, delivers the much needed emergency supplies. Being a voluntary service, Jamie approached Gallagher for help with the running costs of his bike. Gallagher have always had a strong affiliation with Maidstone Hospital and were very happy to support such a worthwhile and selfless service.SERV
Kent Wildlife Trust recently set about a World Record Attempt for the Largest Bee Home and asked supporters for assistance with materials etc - something Gallagher were more than happy to help with.
As you can see it is a spectacular result and will hopefully soon be verified as ‘The World’s Largest Bee Home’.
Students from Mid Kent College, studying Geology and Soils, joined the Gallagher Aggregates team at Hermitage Quarry on a recent field trip. The students were totally surprised by the scale and quality of the operation. The students can be seen here standing on the viewing platform which overlooks the impressive quarry basin.
Every year the Hilton Maidstone raises funds for the Hilton in the Community Foundation and this year is no exception. A week of events saw staff walking, running, rowing or cycling around the Hotel to raise as much money as possible for the Foundation. The nominated charity was the Guide Dogs for Blind Association.
The highlight of the week had to be the Executive Car and Van Valet Service. All the Manager’s in the Hotel agreed to put on their fundraising T-Shirts, leave their desks and paperwork behind and pick up a sponge or a chamois for the day and wash cars, vans and the odd lorry for charity. Gallaghers contributed to the service by providing a van and a tipper lorry to be cleaned (no mean feat!) as well as providing a donation to the Foundation.
The total money raised during the week was £1,285.68. This money has been sent to the Hilton Foundation which will then be passed on to Guide Dogs for the Blind Association and will be used to benefit young people under 25 years of age.
In 2006, Maidstone achieved Growth Point status. Over the next 20 years a £320 million investment programme will lead to the creation of 11,000 new homes and up to 10,000 new jobs.
Maidstone has the largest economy in Kent, of which it is also the county town. Businesses in the town - there are 7,000 of all sizes with access to a 790,000 strong workforce in Kent - are facing up to the economic challenges and many are creating new opportunities.
Since April 2007, Locate in Kent, the investment promotion agency for Kent and Medway, has helped 18 companies move to or expand in Maidstone...
Gallaghers land mark development at junction 7 M20, Eclipse Park is home to the Maidstone Park and Ride, a parcel of land leased to Maidstone Borough Council. Its been a very popular service but it has lacked any creature comforts, the bus stop has been open to the elements. With autumn upon us and winter quickly approaching, Gallaghers were asked whether they could come up with any suggestions. The answer has been for Gallaghers to provide a new enclosed bus stop to benefit the local community in those cold and rainy days.
The All Saint’s area of Maidstone Town Centre is an area that MBC have been seeking to improve. MCCH, a local charity for the support of individuals with learning disabilities, autism and mental health needs, has been awarded the contract to carry out improvements to the area. Gallagher have agreed to support the charity by donating several £’000’s of work, time and materials to the gardens and car park project.
On Thursday 15th October a new Cessna 172 light aircraft was collected from Rochester Airport for delivery to Eastbourne.
At 2,100 feet, and within a couple of minutes of take-off, the propeller suddenly stopped and the pilot immediately sent out a Mayday call.
He looked for a large open space and in the distance saw a long field at Luckhurst Farm. Fortunately, the experienced pilot kept his cool and brought the plane down safely. When we arrived on the scene, I said to the pilot “Christ, I bet that made your backside twitch”
“Actually, no” he said, “I was a bit too busy to think about that”
As a qualified flying instructor with 40 years experience he had a calmness about him that was quite incredible. The plane glided for one minute and he was lucky to be able to tell the tale. The engine casing had literally broken in half!
November has seen Gallaghers attending a Sportsman’s Dinner and Charity auction hosted by the World Cup winner and Manchester United legend, Nobby Stiles MBE, in aid of the Armed Forces Rehabilitation Centre, Hedley Court. The charity auction found the room rather on the ‘tight’ side and because it was for such a worthy cause, the Gallaghers table rose to the occasion taking home the majority of the auction lots. Most of these will be put back into future auctions – an novel form of ‘re-cycling’.
To mark Kent Messenger's 150th anniversary, Kent Messenger launched their Puppy Love appeal aimed to sponsor a guide dog puppy. Setting themselves a target of £5,000, they received many donations from local people and companies. On tuesday, chairman of Gallagher Group, Pat Gallagher handed over a sizable donation helping Kent Messenger and Guide Dogs' Maidstone branch reach their target.
Mr Gallagher said "We are given the ability to get out there and earn a few pounds - what's wrong with giving a bit of it back?" He said that he had worn glasses since he was a child and had eye problems which had led to surgery. "So i know how valuable one's sight is".
Overgrown gardens in some of Maidstone’s most historic spots are being restored by charity volunteers, with the help of local construction company, Gallaghers. The grounds of the Archbishop’s Palace and the All Saints’ Church were given a facelift by MCCH, a charity which supports the lives of people with learning difficulties, autism and mental health problems, under the Growing Concern project. The scheme is supported by Maidstone council, which also plans to plant more trees and replace the railings at the historic palace.