The Hull Seahawks have unveiled the locally based global health and nutrition company Reckitt as title sponsors for next season.

Yorkshire estate agent, Dacre, Son & Hartley has helped a charity that works with homeless people in Leeds, Bradford and Wakefield by collecting and donating food items.

The donation has enabled Homeless Hampers to give 40 additional food parcels out and the firm, which has 20 offices across North and West Yorkshire, also donated refillable water bottles for the homeless community.

Homeless Hampers aims to help and provide essentials and necessities to the homeless and less fortunate community and challenges the public’s perception of the homeless by promoting positive engagement with some of the most vulnerable people in the region. The charity provides essentials in the form of hampers to those who are in shelters or on the streets and boosts engagement with those in need.

Dacre, Son & Hartley’s personnel director, Rebecca Reeves, said: “We are always keen to work with local charities in our area and help wherever we can. The team at Homeless Hampers are an amazing group of people who volunteer their time and energy to get out onto the streets with their food parcels and they make a real difference to many people’s lives and we plan to continue supporting them in the future.”

Tina Suryavansi, from Homeless Hampers, said: “It makes a difference when companies like Dacres collect and donate food, as it means we can pull together even more food parcels than usual.

“We already have various companies that support us regularly, whether that be donating food and drink, offering drop-off points, or allowing us to store our donations in a secure place – but we are always keen to find more!

“Individuals can also help by attending the weekly outreaches or organising collections, and we are also always looking for people who are willing to spend time with our service users, filling in forms for example.”

Yorkshire Building Society and its charity partner Age UK have said thanks a million to the Society’s colleagues and customers for helping to raise over £1 million to help Age UK be there for older people who are struggling most right now.

The two-and-a-half-year partnership generated £1,013,577 towards Age UK’s Building Better Lives programme, helping older people to become more financially resilient. Colleagues walked, cycled and ran over 18,000 miles to help Age UK during incredibly challenging times, including the Covid-19 pandemic and the current cost-of-living crisis.

Donations from customers and members of the public, combined with the launch of an innovative savings account and contributions from the mutual, also helped the partnership reach the milestone.

Age UK’s Building Better Lives programme supports older people through life events such as a health diagnosis, the death of a partner or a change in needs, with the funds raised enabling one-to-one support sessions with trained advisors. Over 4,600 older people were supported during the partnership and with more than 3,600 benefit claims made, Age UK unlocked £8.1 million worth of benefits for older people who were unaware they were entitled to claim.

Yorkshire Building Society also donated over £210,000 to Age UK’s national Advice Line, which is a free and confidential phone service that provides expert advice and impartial information for older people, their families, friends, carers and professionals. The funds raised could allow Age UK to answer more than 43,000 calls from older people during their time of need, and many who had no one else to turn to for help.

Susan Allen, chief exec at Yorkshire Building Society, said: “With more than two million older people in the UK living in poverty[i], our partnership with Age UK raised funds to help some of the most vulnerable in our communities. I can’t thank enough, anyone who supported the partnership to help us reach the million-pound milestone.

“The projects our support funded made a meaningful difference where it was needed most. Whether it was helping older people access unclaimed benefits, answering thousands of calls from people who wouldn’t otherwise know where to turn or using Digital Buddies to ensure older people don’t fall through the digital gap, our colleagues and customers supported the partnership with enthusiasm to improve the lives of older people in our communities.”

Paul Farmer, chief executive at Age UK, said: “We want to say a huge thank you to every Yorkshire Building Society colleague and customer for helping to raise over £1 million to allow Age UK to be there for older people. The cost-of-living crisis is impacting everyone, but it is unbelievably challenging for older people who have to make it week to week on such a fixed income. This is why partnerships like this are so vital for Age UK.

“The funds raised during this partnership have enabled Age UK to be there for older people during the pandemic and running through the current cost-of-living crisis, times when many older people didn’t know where to turn to for support. Thanks to Yorkshire Building Society’s support, Age UK has been able to provide vital support, advice and friendship to older people in communities across the UK. Thank you to every Yorkshire Building Society employee and customer who has helped us to raise a fantastic amount to help older people in their communities.”