Marshall’s Mill community donate 186 gifts to Leeds Women’s Aid

The community of businesses based at Marshall’s Mill and The Round Foundry, along with neighbours at the Round Foundry Media Centre, have collected and donated 186 Christmas gifts to Leeds Women’s Aid.

The collection drive has been a regular initiative on the estate for five years. The gifts will be provided to women and children that are supported by the charity this Christmas who otherwise would go without.

Lisa Riley, Marshall’s Mill Events Co-Ordinator and organiser of the annual drive, commented:

“It is wonderful to see the business community on the estate come together for the fifth year to really make a difference to families going through a difficult time during the festive period.”

“Each year our tenants get more and more generous with their donations, and we continue to gain more gifts than the year previously, meaning that more women and children can receive a gift this year where they otherwise would not have.”

One of the workers from Women’s Aid explained how important the donations were:

“This means everything. The women and children at the refuge have left their homes, they often have financial problems, they have no contact with friends and families, so to get these lovely presents makes the difference between having a Christmas, or having no Christmas.

“For some children these will be the best presents they’ve ever had, particularly if their father has been controlling or vindictive.

“We asked Lisa to collect presents for teenagers because they often get overlooked in our general appeal. Teenage children can be particularly fragile having broken links with friends, cut off social media ties and lost their bedroom. If they have a bad experience at Christmas and feel excluded, they can put pressure on mum to return to an abusive relationship.

“Leeds Women’s Aid is very grateful for the generosity of the businesses in Holbeck. It means a lot to our families that they know there is someone out there who cares about them.”

The Christmas gift collection is just one of many local charity initiatives that the community at Marshall’s Mill take part in throughout the year. Tenants took part in the Leeds 10k in July this year, raising over £500 for Leeds Mind, along with taking part in a Christmas quiz fundraiser earlier in December where tenants raised £225 for homelessness charity Emmaus Leeds.

 

This post is based on a press release issued on behalf of the Round Foundry and Marshall’s Mill Estate

Photo: The All Response Media team at Marshall’s Mill with gifts donated