Safety at an Ellesmere Port refinery has helped a cerebral palsy charity.
An uncle, father and grandfather, all working at Essar Stanlow, have been able to support a charity close to their hearts following a recent safety achievement of eight million hours without a lost time injury at the refinery.
The £3,000 donation was made to Wirral based Stick ‘n’ Step as part of the company’s Let’s Give initiative which links its commitment to safety directly with charitable giving.
Donations are made to local charities nominated by employees who have had personal dealings with them.
Stick ‘n’ Step supports children and young people who have cerebral palsy and their families across north west England and north Wales.
The charity provides personalised group ‘conductive education’ sessions for up to 70 children at their centre every week. The sessions see active learning and include play, mobility tasks and songs to develop functional skills.
Children and young people are motivated by working alongside others in similar circumstances in positive surroundings and are empowered to achieve realistic goals that are specific and relevant to them.
Maintenance technician Joe Shaw has been at Stanlow for 10 years with his father and brother also working at the refinery.
Explaining why he chose to nominate the charity he said: “My 11-year-old nephew George has cerebral palsy. The charity has done wonders not only for his physical development but for his confidence too. He is a massive football fan and following great treatment and determination on his part he plays every Saturday for CP (Cerebral Palsy) United.
“As a small and local charity close to the heart of our family it is fantastic that we have been able to support Stick ‘n’ Step with this donation from Essar.”
Hettie Miles at the charity added: “Our aim is simple, we want to enable each child to reach their personal potential in terms of their confidence, mobility and independence.
“We are very grateful to Essar for their generous donation which will greatly support our current fundraising efforts to improve the centre.
“When you’re living with cerebral palsy and battling hard to take your first steps, or you’re learning to crawl, you need a completely level, totally flat space to practice.
“We’re planning to install an ultra-modern, state-of-the-art new floor surface in our classroom so whether our children are crawling, walking, running or sitting, the floor is comfortable and safe. The money from Essar is a huge help towards our fundraising target.”
