Holt Recruitment, based in Bournemouth, took on an epic week of unique challenges to raise funds for Home-Start Wessex, a charity that does incredible work to support local families in need.

Senior managers at Holt set their consultants a series of anything-but-ordinary challenges, promising to donate each time a challenge was completed.

On Day 1, Niki Birrell and Samuel Robinson braved the shave, whilst, on Day 2, the team had great fun during an office-wide conga. Day 3 saw the team pushing their limits with some intense exercises, whilst on Day 4, Caroline Pope from Home-Start Wessex joined the team to take part in a giant Macarena performance. The final challenge saw brave male consultants take on hot wax strips. The boys said every bit of pain was worth it for such a fantastic cause. One consultant even agreed to have a permanent tattoo to show his dedication to the fundraising efforts.

Thanks to the team’s amazing efforts, Home-Start Wessex reached its pledge target of £2,500. The funds will help the charity to support homeless families with young children this Christmas, as well as enable Home-Start Wessex to take part in the Big Give Christmas Challenge, the UK’s biggest collaborative fundraising campaign. Home-Start Wessex now has the opportunity to double the £2,500 donations with match funding provided by Big Give’s Champions and public donations given through Big Give’s online fundraising platform during the week of the Christmas Challenge campaign.

Karen Wheeler, Global Head of Automotive at Holt Recruitment, said, “We love being a corporate partner for Home-Start Wessex, and we were thrilled to be able to pledge the funds they needed to support young mums in our community this Christmas. A huge shout-out to the team for being such great sports. They had lots of fun completing the challenges, including dance routines, fitness activities and a small amount of waxing! Roll on Christmas!”
Earlier this year, Holt Recruitment conquered an epic Zig Zag to Everest Challenge to raise money for Home-Start Wessex. Using Bournemouth zigzags, the team scaled Mount Everest in a day, walking 8,849 metres to the ‘summit’, and raising over £7,000 for Home-Start Wessex in the process.

Caroline Pope, Corporate Partnerships & Marketing Manager at Home-Start Wessex, said, “We are incredibly grateful to Holt Recruitment for completing this latest set of challenges to raise money for our work. The money they have raised will make a life-changing difference to vulnerable families in our local communities.

On top of the £7,000 they raised earlier in the year on their Zigzag to Everest Challenge, they have shown so much dedication to our cause. We have nominated them for the Home-Start UK Corporate Volunteer Award for their fantastic support. The winners will be announced later in the year, so we’ll be keeping our fingers crossed they gain the national recognition they deserve.”The Holt Recruitment Group is an ever-expanding group of recruitment specialists who have secured an impressive base of Automotive, Engineering and Professional Services clients within the Automotive, Aerospace, Defence and Precision Engineering sectors across the UK.

You can still play your part in Home-Start Wessex’s supporting homeless families with young children campaign by donating during the online donation phase of the Big Give. To have your donation to Home-Start Wessex matched, you can donate on BigGive.org from 3rd to 10th December. Find out more on the Big Give website: https://community.biggive.org/s/pledge?campaignId=a056900002TPVjBAAX

Since 1995, Home-Start Wessex has helped over 3,500 local families and supported over 10,000 children in Bournemouth, Poole, Christchurch and beyond. Their reach covers the Purbecks, Swanage, Weymouth, Dorchester, Bridport, the whole of the BCP Council area, including Bournemouth, Poole and Christchurch, across the borders of Hampshire and Wiltshire, going as far north as Cranborne and Fordingbridge and as far east as New Milton. Their volunteers offer friendship, practical support and advice to families who are facing difficulties, including poor mental health, depression, disability, domestic abuse, bereavement, isolation and multiple births.

Their service is in more demand than ever. If you can commit to 2-3 hours each week to help, please contact heidi@homestartwessex.org.uk

https://community.biggive.org/s/pledge?campaignId=a056900002TPVjBAAX