Stagecoach Staff raise over £3K for the Rainbow Centre, helping children and adults overcome physical limitations

Photo: Operations Manager for Portsmouth, Colin Ashcroft & Driving Instructor and fellow Stagecoach team members present the cheque to The Rainbow Centre's fundraising team  Yvonne Campbell & Lauren Chevalier

Portsmouth depot staff have raised £3,226 for The Rainbow Centre, a centre in Fareham, Hampshire that helps children, adults, families and carers affected by neurological conditions.

Staff from the Stagecoach bus depot in Portsmouth, including drivers, managers, cleaners and engineers came together to create a themed bus for Halloween and Christmas.

Throughout December, Santa was behind the wheel of his mobile grotto - a Christmas themed bus - which travelled across Portsmouth, Havant and Waterlooville, raising money for The Rainbow Centre.

Staff dressed up  as Santa Claus and the Elf,  bringing a smile to the faces of customers - young and old, giving away festive freebies and collecting donations for the charity.

Santa, aka Glenn Perry - a Stagecoach bus driver at Portsmouth for 8 years - said: “It is an amazing amount of money that we have raised and we would like to thank our passengers for giving so  generously  It is the kindness of the community that really stands out, so I would like to thank them for their ongoing support.”

The Rainbow Centre uses conductive education to help children with cerebral palsy and other neurological conditions. It also helps adults with Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis and those recovering from a stroke. The therapies enable severely disabled children to walk and perform other activities, and enable adults to re-train some of the motor skills that they lose with Parkinson’s disease or a stroke.

Colin Ashcroft, Operations Manager for Stagecoach in Portsmouth said: “The management team are immensely proud of the staff at Stagecoach in Portsmouth for their hard work and dedication throughout their fundraising activity and raising such significant funds. 

"Stagecoach has always been committed to making a positive and lasting contribution to the local communities in which it serves."

"The Rainbow Centre is a fantastic facility that provides much needed support  children and adults with neurological conditions which really transforms people's lives. We are delighted to know that our donation will go towards the continued work that the centre provides to the local community".

After presenting the cheque, the Stagecoach team were treated to a tour of the centre to gain more insight into it works with children and adults to nurture their development.

Colin added: “The tour was extremely well received and our team could see how valuable the centre is to the community. It was wonderful seeing all the resources they have and the services they are able to offer both children and adults alike.”

The Rainbow Centre, which will celebrate its 30th anniversary in March, was set up in 1990 by Helen Somerset How MBE, to help children and adults overcome their physical limitations, enabling them to lead more independent lives.

Yvonne Campbell, Head Of Fundraising at The Rainbow Centre, said "We have been absolutely delighted to have the support of the team at Stagecoach, and blown away at the amount of hard work and determination their team have shown in raising such a fantastic amount of money for us. In our 30th Anniversary year, they are helping us to secure the Rainbow legacy for future generations to come".