‘Inspirational’ charity initiative delivers 10,000 meals to foodbanks in Greater Manchester
An “inspirational” charity initiative backed by residents and famous names in Greater Manchester has donated the equivalent of 10,000 meals to foodbanks in the region.
As part of the now-viral #NoWasteofSpace campaign – which was created by electric car brand, Polestar, after staff at the company’s Trafford Centre-based hub in saw Manchester United and England star Marcus Rashford’s recent Feeding Britain’s Children documentary and felt inspired to help local residents in need – empty boxes were delivered to unsuspecting residents and celebrities in Greater Manchester, with a request for them to be filled with non-perishable food and personal care items.
A total of 325 food boxes – weighing 2.2 tonnes in total – were donated to FareShare UK hubs in Greater Manchester and Merseyside.
If that wasn’t brilliant enough as it is, the car company then matched the public’s donations kilo-for-kilo and delivered the 4.4 tonnes of supplies via a fleet of ten Polestar 2 models – which would have otherwise sat idle due to the Trafford Centre remaining closed to the public until its planned reopening next month – earlier this week.
As well as hundreds of residents taking part in the campaign, Manchester comedian Jason Manford and actress Emma Samms were among some of the celebrities to fill up boxes, while Manchester United player Victor Lindelöf, Leicester City goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel and Chelsea F.C Women players Pernile Harder and Magdalena Eriksson all dug deep for the cause.
“We could never have envisaged the incredible response this campaign received,” Jonathan Goodman, Head of Polestar UK, said.
“And the generosity of all who took part is truly heart-warming,”
“In 2021 it’s awful to think that some of the nation’s most vulnerable are having to go without basic items, so I’m glad the Manchester team were able to use our resources to help such a worthy cause”.
Miranda Kaunang – Head of Development at FareShare Greater Manchester – added: “The COVID-19 crisis has been particularly challenging for those we work with, so Polestar’s #NoWasteofSpace campaign is particularly timely [and] the efforts of the Polestar Manchester team while they wait to re-open has generated an incredible response.
“With over 10,000 meals donated through their initiative, this campaign will make a real difference to those in need”.
Polestar added that it would continue to use its resources to help worthy causes in the local community and hinted that more plans for the #NoWasteofSpace campaign in store for the rest of the year, with Jonathan Goodman adding: “We’re looking forward to continuing this effort once the Trafford Centre has re-opened, working with the other retailers and centre management to support the community around our latest space”.
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Polestar Manchester is due to re-open at the Trafford Centre in accordance with government guidelines on 12th April 2021, at the earliest.