Ogier in Jersey supports Beresford Street Kitchen with £10,000 donation

Ogier has joined Beresford Street Kitchen as a corporate supporter, with a £10,000 donation to fund 667 workplace training sessions for its 55 crew members across their social enterprises.

Beresford Street Kitchen (BSK) provides quality education, training, and employment opportunities for people with learning disabilities and/or autism. Their vision is of an inclusive workforce where people can maximise their potential, be recognised for their skills and be regarded positively and with respect.

Ogier's £10,000 donation will fund workplace training across BSK's social enterprises – Beresford Street Kitchen, La Hougue Bie Tea Rooms, BSK Print Works, and events and catering – to provide practical experience for crew members in customer service, barista skills, food preparation and vinyl printing as well as social and independence skills.

Georgie Dodd, fundraising and marketing manager at Beresford Street Kitchen, said: "We provide more than 11,000 workplace training sessions for the crew at BSK. That's over 40,000 hours of quality training and employment a year. These sessions are fundamental to the crew's journey and are vital for preparing crew to move on from BSK. The crew report a staggering 21% increase in life satisfaction since being part of BSK, and we are so grateful to Ogier for their £10,000, which will help us continue providing the opportunities the crew need to maximise their potential and where appropriate, find employment within the community."

Ogier's CSR manager Nicola Carroll added: "We support people in our communities who are facing barriers to entering the workplace, so that they are empowered to pursue their ambitions. We are so pleased to be supporting BSK and the fact that the crew report a 21% increase in life satisfaction since being part of BSK, raising their average score to higher than that of a non-disabled islander, speaks volumes.

"The concept of always learning is fundamental to Ogier. Like BSK we cultivate learning opportunities because there are all sorts of ways to develop and grow. We are very much looking forward to developing our charity partnership with them. Recently, our volunteers enjoyed helping out at BSK's inaugural Family Fun Day, with eight from Ogier running the popular kids' retro games stall and lucky dip. We were delighted to see that the day raised £3,000 – and we're looking forward to next year!"