Curo News

Charity of the Year 2026

Mon, 30 Mar 2026 13:32:10 Z

This year we are proudly supporting Wiltshire & Bath Air Ambulance (WBAA) as our Charity of the Year! WBAA provide critical medical care by land and air, across the local area. They receive no government funding and rely entirely on the generous support of the local community.

Each year we ask colleagues to nominate charities close to their heart, and a shortlist of organisations is put to a colleague vote. With over 44% of the total votes, it's clear colleagues feel WBAA is a cause we should support.

We were recently invited to the windswept airbase near Semington in Wiltshire to meet the staff, explore the site and get to know more about how their operations work. Did you know the team can provide critical care to anyone in Wiltshire in under 11 minutes.

We're starting our fundraising for WBAA with over £1,950 already in the pot, including a donation from Travis Perkins and income from our charity fridge. We hope to add to this amount over the coming year.

Our Charity of the year committee have been planning a packed calendar of fundraising events including quizzes, car washes, bake sales and more. And keep an eye out for our newly rebranded vans with our charity partner displayed on.

If you're interested in the types of missions the air ambulance has done in the past, and the locations, you can see all of this and more with the charity's interactive mission map Mission map | Wiltshire and Bath Air Ambulance Charity

We look forward to sharing updates as we raise money for this brilliant charity.

Charity partnership

Mon, 22 Jan 2024 10:34:09 Z

Curo colleagues walked, baked and cycled their way to raise more than £11,000 for their chosen charity of the year St Peter’s Hospice.

Each year, Curo colleagues vote for a local charity to focus their fundraising support on. St Peter’s Hospice was chosen as a thank you for the care and support the hospice provided for a much-loved and respected colleague – Mike Purnell – who lost his battle with cancer in January 2023.

The charity is the only adult hospice in Bristol, South Gloucestershire and North Somerset, supporting a population of nearly one million.

“St Peter’s has positively touched the lives of lots of people, including many of us at Curo,” says Victor da Cunha, Curo’s Chief Executive. “I’m incredibly proud of all the colleagues who’ve taken part in everything from sponsored spinathons to boot sales and raffles to raise this phenomenal amount.”

For people nearing the end of their lives, St Peter’s Hospice aims to provide physical, psychological and spiritual care in an environment of support, comfort, compassion and respect. Professionals support patients in their own homes as well as at the hospice.

Ben Lee, Philanthropy and Partnerships Manager, St Peter’s Hospice, says: “The Curo colleagues demonstrated remarkable proactivity and creativity in their fundraising activities. They signed up for events, organised office fundraisers, and even embraced challenges such as a cold water dip.

“Curo's fundraising efforts will directly contribute to supporting the care provided by St Peter's Hospice. The funds raised play a crucial role in sustaining and enhancing the hospice's services, ensuring access to compassionate and specialised care for patients facing life-limiting illnesses. This support enables the hospice to offer comfort, dignity and a comprehensive range of services to individuals and their families during challenging times.”

Thanks to the following suppliers for their support with our fundraising: Anthony Collins Solicitors LLP, Appello Careline, CDW, Conferex, Devonshires Solicitors, FlexMR, a division of MRSG Limited, Freestyle, Gem Security Systems, Genesys – JN, ITGL, Jackson Lift Services, JC Applications Development, JCG Electrical, LeasePlan UK, MD Building Services, Midland Forestry, Orbis Protect, Phishing Tackle, Softcat, Sunrise Software, The Complete Roofing Company, The Monarch Partnership, Total Jobs, Travis Perkins, Vuelio, Wavenet, Woods Building Services Ta AA Woods.

Curo colleagues take the plunge for charity

Mon, 11 Dec 2023 12:56:44 Z

A group of Curo employees raised more than £1,000 for St Peter’s Hospice by taking part in a cold water swim.

Michelle Sage, Mason Sage, Caz Gray, Karen Sheppard, Carl McMurtry, Tracy Benson and Kai Nickells braved the icy waters of Portishead outdoor swimming pool on Saturday, 2 December at the St Peter’s Hospice cold water dip. With outside temperatures barely nudging above zero all day the group watched on with an impending sense of dread as other groups completed their swims – with everyone limited to just 15 minutes in the water because of the cold weather.

Michelle said: “It was -1°C as we were getting undressed to get into the freezing pool. None of us were looking forward to it – but it was all for charity, and that’s what kept us going. In the end, we all smashed it and I felt amazing afterwards.

“We are overjoyed to have raised £1,092 for the charity.”

St Peter’s Hospice is Curo’s 2023 charity of the year. The charity was chosen as a thank you for the care and support it provided for a much-loved and respected colleague – Mike Purnell – who lost his battle with bowel cancer in January.

Michelle said: “Mike wasn’t only a colleague of mine, but a dear friend as well. St Peter’s Hospice looked after Mike, and were a massive support to him and his family.”

Clemi Williams, Corporate Partnerships Officer at St Peter’s Hospice, said: “I was so impressed with the Curo team! They did so well, and had the best costumes too!”

Curo colleagues pick St Peter’s Hospice as their new Charity of the Year

Mon, 27 Feb 2023 16:03:35 Z

Kind Curo colleagues have chosen St Peter’s Hospice to raise funds for as their Charity of the Year 2023.

“St Peter’s is a charity which has positively touched the lives of lots of people, including many of us at Curo,” says Victor da Cunha, Curo’s Chief Executive. “We’ll do all we can to raise as much as possible over the coming year to support its incredible work.”

St Peter’s Hospice is the only adult hospice in Bristol, South Gloucestershire and North Somerset, supporting a population of nearly one million. For people nearing the end of their lives, it aims to provide physical, psychological and spiritual care in an environment of support, comfort, compassion and respect. Professionals support patients in their own homes as well as at the hospice. They also teach other healthcare professionals how to care for people at the end of their lives.

“St Peter’s Hospice are so pleased to have been picked as Curo’s charity partner,” says Clemi Williams, Corporate Partnerships Officer at the hospice. This type of support means we can continue providing the very best end-of-life care. The past year has been particularly difficult, with demands for our services increasing, so this partnership will go a long way in supporting patients and families. We’re excited to work with Curo and support them in their various fundraising activities.”

Curo colleagues have already been busy coming up with fundraising ideas, with a sponsored ‘spinathon’ planned for March and a gruelling 100k Jurassic Coast walking challenge taking place in May.

Every year, Curo colleagues are asked to pick one charity to fundraise for. The process starts with colleagues suggesting charities to support, these are shortlisted and they are then asked to cast their votes.

Over the past 12 months, Curo colleagues have raised a grand total of £10,842 for Bath City Farm as their Charity of the Year 2022. Alison Howell, Communications Lead at Bath City Farm, says that the money raised will have a tremendous impact. “It will improve the lives of our team, volunteers and visitors in so many ways,” she says.

Curo joins forces with Bath City Farm

Wed, 21 Sep 2022 15:19:51 Z

Curo are proud to support Bath City Farm as our charity of the year for 2022.

The farm is a place of fun and learning in the heart of Twerton, serving the local area and the wider Bath community.

As part of our link-up, a Curo van now proudly sports the Bath City Farm logo.

“It’s great to have our logo on the van,” says Alison Howell, Communication and Development Lead at the farm. “It will really help to raise awareness in the local area. Hopefully, people who haven’t heard of us will visit the farm.”

One of the ways Curo has raised money for Bath City Farm has been a sponsored ‘three peaks challenge’, which has made more than £5,600 so far. On 16 September, a team of 23 Curo colleagues climbed the three tallest mountains in England, Scotland and Wales – Scafell Pike (978m), Ben Nevis (1,345m) and Snowdon (1,085m).

Martin Whitlock, Health and Safety Facilities Manager at Curo, who completed the hike in 24 hours, says: “The climbing was relentless. With tired legs and no sleep it was really tough to keep going. Your brain is telling you to stop and it’s only the camaraderie and support of the group that keeps you going.

“After the climb we were exhausted but elated that we had raised so much money for Bath City Farm, which does so much amazing work for the local community.”

The farm offers local people who are having issues with their mental health the chance to volunteer. “Some have schizophrenia or bipolar disorder, or they might have been recently bereaved,” says Alison.

Medical professionals can refer volunteers or they can refer themselves. “The after-effects of the pandemic mean we’ve seen more people volunteering,” says Alison. “There are 60 volunteers on our books and on Mondays and Wednesdays they help out at the farm, planting veg and tending to animals.

“They grow everything from seed, and produce such as salad leaves, tomatoes, courgettes and onions is then sold in our café and shop.”

The volunteers help with mucking out, feeding and grooming the animals, including chickens, goats and pigs. “Animals make a world of difference,” says Alison. “Caring for them helps to quieten minds. The farm is a safe place.”

To give the volunteers a welcoming place to relax, Curo has installed a new kitchen in their cabin. “We’re absolutely thrilled with it,” says Alison. “It’s made such a difference to our volunteers to have somewhere clean and tidy where they can gather together and prepare food and drinks.”

The farm also runs an after-school club for local children and a ‘Farmhands’ scheme for young people aged 11-16. “It shows them that farming is something that they can get involved with,” says Alison. “We teach them about the environment and how food is produced. It helps them to feel enthusiastic about nature.”