On Sunday, Darron Cavanagh, chief operating officer at the property security contractor VPS Group, and Lee Newman, CEO, will climb onto their saddles and start pedalling on a five-day cycle ride around the UK to the Group’s main offices. From London to Manchester, via Norwich, they are hoping to raise £50,000 for Samaritans and other mental health causes.
They have £25,000 already donated by friends, colleagues, suppliers and the public. You can visit the JustGiving page for donations at justgiving.com.
Darron says: “We’re incredibly grateful for all the support we’ve received to date. When it looked like we were coming out of the first lockdown last year, myself and Lee discussed the idea of doing something to raise money for charity. Lockdowns have been particularly tough for people’s mental health, so we decided on a bike ride to raise money for Samaritans and other campaigns to support mental health and wellbeing.”
In the UK, as the firm says, suicide is the biggest killer of men under 50 and people aged 20 to 34. Within the construction, security, and facilities management sectors, three of the key sectors the VPS Group work in, are some of the highest risk occupations susceptible to stress.
Darron adds: “This week is Mental Health Awareness week, so it is a good moment to encourage people to support others, to talk to others, and shift the stigma away.”
Lee Newman says: “Being able to invest in a programme that helps people and raises awareness is really exciting. My wife Sophie is a Samaritan and the number of people that ring through to Samaritans every day is astonishing. There is a call every seven seconds. Anything we can do to help that organisation, and ultimately help the mental health of our nation, has to be a good thing.”
Guest cyclists, including Paul Lewis, subsidiary company Evander’s Managing Director, will be joining the cyclists on sections of the route in support of the group’s fund raising.
