Supporting the Westminster Community Over Christmas

Axis Supports Vulnerable Residents Across Westminster This Christmas

Throughout December, Axis was honoured to support Westminster City Council in brightening up vulnerable residents’ Christmases.

Our efforts included hosting a hairdressing project that partnered with three charities to offer free haircuts to their beneficiaries, volunteering to deliver Christmas hampers across Westminster, contributing to a sheltered scheme’s Christmas party, and donating to a vital food bank to ensure that many families could enjoy the festive period without any worries.

Read below for a breakdown of these initiatives:

WCC Hairdressing Project

We partnered with WCC to support three charities – Single Homeless Project, Centre Point UK, & Changing Lives UK through an incredible day of hairdressing.

The Hairdressing Project took place on 16th December, supporting vulnerable people in Westminster by providing them access to free haircuts. The event took place at one of Single Homeless Project’s high-priority hostels in Westminster, which provides vital support to individuals experiencing mental health challenges.

On the day, Axis offered free washes and haircuts to attendees who wanted them, while those who preferred not to could relax in the common room and enjoy a complimentary festive lunch, snacks, and refreshments. We also gifted self-care bags to all attendees, filled with items like mini shampoos and conditioners, to support them in continuing their self-care journey even after the event. The day was a huge success with 25 people attending, 17 of them getting a haircut or even a beard trim!

The incredible idea was put forward by Lindsey Gibbons, Senior RLO, who wanted to utilise her hairdressing background to support residents. Lindsey said ‘The day went really well, we started by setting up all the equipment and collecting the lunches. The staff gave us great information regarding any needs or requirements which made the day run smoothly. We were able to interact with the resident not only whilst cutting their hair but also sat with them whilst we listened to Christmas music, ate lunch and talked.

I felt a mixture of happiness and sadness because it made me realise how much work goes into the hostels and how grateful everyone was for their residency there. The staff were fantastic, and the residents really do feel at home there which is wonderful to see. I felt sadness because most of us take a trip to the hairdressers for granted, it’s very accessible for some. But the project gave anyone who finds it hard to be in social places, or maybe find it hard financially, to have the opportunity to receive this gift from us. I had a great time, and I feel that it was a huge success.’

Alongside Lindsey, two other Axis volunteers had hairdressing backgrounds who also supported the day utilising their skills, Donna Rees and Abbey McNally, RLOs. It was wonderful that these hidden talents within Axis were discovered and made a meaningful impact to the most vulnerable within Westminster.

Thank you to our other wonderful volunteers who also made this day a huge success: Katie Andrews, Adila Gredelj, Mike Fleming, Vera O’Driscoll

Adila said ‘We had a lovely day. It was so nice to see many people turning up. We have served a Christmas dinner which everyone enjoyed. I had a great time with everyone who came, everyone had a haircut and it was so lovely to see all their happy faces and how much they enjoyed the day. I was so happy and glad that we were there. It showed how our little help made many people happy and smiling. I will definitely do it again and would recommend everyone to do it’

Katie and Lindsey arranged donations from other companies for the day which helped bring the whole day together, thank you both for your support with this! ESS donated the festive lunch at a discounted price and Capital Hair and Beauty donated hair products for the self-care bags. Thank you for your kind generosity!

To see photos from this amazing event, click here.

Christmas Hamper Deliveries

We also supported the delivery of 100s of Christmas hampers to older residents using Axis vans to brighten up their Christmas. This was organised by Westminster City Council, but several Axis employees used their volunteering day to support this initiative on the 12th of December.

We were proud to support the delivery of hundreds of Christmas hampers to older residents, using Axis vans to help brighten up their Christmas. This initiative was organised by Westminster City Council, but several Axis employees dedicated their time by using their volunteering day to take part.

Thank you to our four incredible volunteers who helped with the hamper deliveries: Craig Roberts, Joshua Hodson, Elliot Munnelly, Mert Keklik

Other Westminster Christmas Donations

Axis also had the opportunity to support more of Westminster City Council’s festive initiatives, donating £500 to Devonshire House Christmas Party, to reduce loneliness amongst our elderly residents as well as donating £1000 to the Paddington Food Bank which provided essential support to families in need.

Just because the festive season is over, it doesn’t mean you can’t still get involved with volunteering! If you would like to use your volunteering day, please reach out to vera.odriscoll@axiseurope.com