Mansfield colleagues raise £5,000 to help air ambulance save lives

Tanya Taylor being presented with the donation cheque at the society’s head office by HR manager Vickie Preston, alongside society colleagues David Charlton, Mandy Whitten and Jodie Burnside.

Mansfield Building Society colleagues raised more than £2,800, while the society’s charitable trust contributed a further £2,500 to the Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire Air Ambulance – creating a total of £5,344.

The air ambulance was named the society’s staff charity partner after employees at The Mansfield voted to adopt the charity at the end of 2019.

Staff have been fundraising throughout the pandemic to help the charity, which provides critical life-saving services to those in urgent need.

Although the pandemic hindered some of the planned fundraising, staff rose to the challenge by arranging raffles, sponsored lunches and other activities to raise the cash.

Vickie Preston, head of HR for The Mansfield, said: “As a local building society, colleagues are committed to supporting our community, and what better way to do this than fundraising for the Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire Air Ambulance – a key medical service that operates across our heartland area.

"The emergency care provided by the air ambulance is crucial and we are very proud to play an active part in extending availability of the service to help those urgently in need.”

On average, the air ambulance flies three missions per day, which cost around £3,500 each.

The charity service carries dedicated critical care paramedics and doctors, on-board aircraft or by car, who are able to perform out of hospital surgical procedures from thoracotomies and caesareans to amputations by the roadside.

It relies completely on public donations and receives no government funding.

Tanya Taylor, corporate development fundraiser for the air ambulance service, said: “At the Lincs and Notts Air Ambulance, patients are at the heart of everything we do.

"With crews on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year, our highly skilled doctors and paramedics help people involved in life-threatening incidents.

"Whether on board the helicopter or one of our critical care cars, the crew transports a mini A&E department to patients involved in emergencies ranging from cardiac arrest and road traffic collisions to assaults.

"We work closely with our fantastic NHS but we don’t receive any funding.

"On behalf of the team here at Lincs and Notts Air Ambulance, a huge thank you to everyone at the Mansfield Building Society for truly making a difference.”

Anyone wishing to support the frontline service can visit www.ambucopter.org.uk or call 01522 548469.