Pictured above: (l-r) Tony King, Sanctuary's Group Director
- Capital Investment; Sanctuary resident Richard Goodchild; and
Tony Larkin, Head Coach of the England Blind Football
Squad
Leading UK housing provider Sanctuary Group today kicked-off its
support of the Royal National College for the Blind (RNC) in
Hereford.
The agreement has seen Sanctuary pledge funds to support the
College for the forthcoming 2010 IBSA World Blind Football
Championship which takes place at Hereford's stunning multi-million
pound international-standard sports and conferencing centre,
thePoint4 at the RNC.
The event, which runs from Saturday 14th to Sunday 22nd August,
is the first of its kind to take place in this country and will see
ten teams from across the World, including England, battle it out
for one of the most coveted prizes in disability sport.
Sanctuary's support will provide vital funding for the
Championships and will be used by the RNC to pay for a spectator
stand at thePoint4. The world-class viewing facility will
accommodate over 450 fans and supporters and provide the backdrop
to the England squad's bid to be crowned world champions on home
soil.
Tony King, Sanctuary's Group Director - Capital Investment,
said: "We are delighted to be supporting the RNC and build on the
strong local links we are establishing in Hereford.
"There is far more to housing than bricks and mortar and
supporting the College and events like this Championship helps to
build strong, thriving communities where people are proud to call
home."
Tony Larkin, Head Coach of the England Blind Football squad and
Head of Events and Conferencing at RNC, added: "We are delighted
and pleased to have Sanctuary Group on board as a local supporter
of this event.
"The response from Sanctuary, local businesses and the community
of Herefordshire has been fantastic and this will help make the
Championship this summer a world class event for all."
Tournament Director Jon Dutton commented: "We are delighted that
Sanctuary have pledged their support to the World Championships and
are very grateful for this significant contribution".
Sanctuary's support for the RNC continues to strengthen the
Group's operations in Hereford where it has been selected to manage
the development of a proposed urban village in the city centre.
The planned development will see the building of up to 800 much
needed homes in Hereford and forms part of proposals for major
regeneration throughout the city which is being led by Hereford
Futures.
Sanctuary will link investment and construction programmes on
the project to local employment and training initiatives. This will
involve providing education and training opportunities and working
with contractors and local suppliers to encourage them to recruit
local people.