Welcome to the summer 2023 edition of Prettys’ CSR newsletter.
At the beginning of the year, we announced our 2023 charity of the year, SARS (further information below). The staff at Prettys have been participating in a number of different activities to raise funds for our charity of the year. In addition to these fundraising activities, we also continue to support Suffolk Law Centre by providing free legal advice and FIND through food bank donations.
We cover the following events:
Charity of the Year – SARS
Suffolk Law Centre
Ipswich Legal Walk
FIND Food Bank Donations
Charity of the Year – SARS
Earlier in the year, Prettys named Suffolk’s emergency medical charity, SARS (Suffolk Accident Rescue Service), as our Charity of the Year for 2023.
SARS provides advanced pre-hospital resources on a voluntary basis for local communities throughout Suffolk and the border areas of Norfolk, Essex and Cambridgeshire. As a charity, SARS receives no central government funding and relies on voluntary donations to fund equipment and training for its clinical volunteers.
Chair of Prettys’ CSR committee, Michael Booth has said: “Prettys is proud to support the work of SARS as the firm’s charity of the year. We are always looking for ways to make a positive difference to the local community, and supporting SARS is one way in which we can help to change – and save – lives.”
Further information about SARS is available at its website
Saddle Up for SARS
To raise funds for SARS, staff at Prettys have taken part in various events. First up was the “Saddle Up for SARS” challenge. The challenge consisted of members of staff setting their own target and timeframe to “saddle up” and try to meet their target and raise funds in the process. This could have consisted of cycling, horse riding, motorcycling, or any other form of activity requiring a saddle!
In addition to individual challenges, Prettys also held an internal “Bike and Bake” fundraising event at the end of May 2023 to add some extra miles to the overall target. We arranged for a static bike to be placed in the reception area of our office in Ipswich and a number of members of staff hopped onto the bike and completed a ‘shift’ to add some extra miles.
Encouragement was provided in the form of cake, as we held a bake sale alongside the static bike. Colleagues provided a variety of homemade bakes to the bake sale, and we received a lot of additional support from other businesses located in the same office. Overall, we had a lot of fun and raised over £380 during the “Saddle Up for SARS” event.
Additional events
In addition to the above, we have also held a number of other internal events at our office in Ipswich. We have held sweepstakes for both the Eurovision Song Contest and the FIFA Women’s World Cup, along with a golf ball sale!
We are planning a number of other events for later on in the year and are looking forward to raising more funds for SARS.
Suffolk Law Centre
Throughout 2023, Prettys has continued supporting and providing assistance via Suffolk Law Centre. Based in the centre of Ipswich, Suffolk Law Centre provides a vital service for the community in Suffolk by providing advice on legal rights and support to access to legal services. Prettys have been supporting Suffolk Law Centre for a number of years by providing pro-bono legal advice. Our lawyers volunteer their services at various clinics at the centre, including for general disputes, wills and probate, and personal injury matters.
Ipswich Legal Walk
On Tuesday, 11 July 2023, Prettys took part in the annual Ipswich Legal Walk alongside a number of other lawyers and members of the legal community. The Legal Walk is a 10km sponsored walk around Ipswich in aid of raising funds for Suffolk Law Centre and the Eastern Legal Support Trust (ELST) . The walk starts with a loop around Christchurch Park, then loops between the old cemeteries to the north, down south to Alexandra Park, back for a further loop around Christchurch Park, then finishes at The Woolpack pub.
Suffolk Law Centre provides a vital service for the community in Suffolk to ensure they are aware of their legal rights and have the right support to access legal services that may be available to them. Prettys are a long term supporter of Suffolk Law Centre, providing donations and pro-bono legal advice through the organisation on a regular basis.
FIND food bank donations
Staff at Prettys have also been donating products to FIND, a local foodbank based in Ipswich.
FIND (Families in Need) is a local charity who, “for over 30 years, has offered a lifeline of support to people in Ipswich and the surrounding areas who are experiencing poverty and despair. FIND provide free food parcels and personal care items to support people through a crisis, as well as other household items where the person or family has none. The demand for food parcels has risen year on year and FIND now distributes an average of 120-150 parcels every week, and even more over the Christmas period.”
To support FIND, we provide items that are identified as most indemand – which changes on a monthly basis – and that would assist in preparing appropriate food and personal care packages.
Further information about FIND can be found at its website
