Hot on the heels of nationwide placemaker, Muse’s appointment to deliver the £3.2bn Arden Cross regeneration, the leading developer has donated 40 laptops to West Midlands youth homelessness charity, St Basil’s, through its partnership with LandAid and Computers4Charity.
The donation is part of Muse’s commitment to supporting young people in need, while at the same time promoting sustainability across the built environment.
Rather than holding useable computers in storage following an IT infrastructure upgrade, colleagues at Muse wanted to support a community organisation. St Basil’s was one of the charities in need on LandAid’s waiting list. They were a perfect fit, given the nature of the vital support they provide to young people throughout the West Midlands.
The donation has kindly been extended by Computers4Charity to make sure that one laptop will go to each of the St Basil’s projects across the region, bringing the total donation to 42.
St Basil’s works with young people aged 16-25 across the West Midlands, who are homeless or at risk of homelessness, to enable them to find and keep a home, grow their confidence, develop their skills, increase opportunities, preventing homelessness.
The donation has also done its bit for the environment with Computers4Charity refurbishing the laptops, providing a full data wipe and carbon reduction certificates. This has prevented the purchase and production of new computer equipment, to save six tonnes of CO2 from being released into the atmosphere.
Maggie Grogan, development director at Muse, said: “At Muse, we’re committed to supporting community organisations in the areas we work, helping to provide opportunities for everyone and build brighter futures for all… as it’s not just about bricks and mortar.
“With that in mind, we’re delighted to be supporting the great work of St Basil’s in the West Midlands and will look forward to seeing the laptops we provided going to good use, helping to create life chances for young people and deliver positive, long-lasting change.
”Jean Templeton, CEO at St Basil’s, said: “Thank you so much to Muse and Computers4Charity for their support in providing these laptops to the young people of St Basils. One of the major issues many young people we support face is digital exclusion. It limits access to the digital world, which can be detrimental to a young person completing courses online or even engaging with friends and family. These computers will support young people in each of our projects to achieve their goals. On behalf of them, thank you.
”Paul Morrish, CEO of LandAid, said: “We are thrilled to receive this donation of laptops from Muse and to continue with our strong partnership with Computers4Charity to ensure as many young people experiencing homelessness across the UK as possible, can be digitally connected through computer equipment. We know how important this is with both personal and professional development.
“Moreover, this initiative is one of many practical ways that business across the property and real estate industries can directly support their ESG objectives. This is brilliant to see. We hope this will motivate many others within the sector get involved with donations.
”Muse has been a proud supporter of LandAid – the property industry’s charity – for many years. LandAid works in partnership with Computers4Charity – an organisation that cares for both the climate and the community – to facilitate the donation to St Basil’s.
