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PD Ports, Statutory Harbour Authority for the River Tees and the largest private employer in the Tees Valley, has donated a total of £1,000 to local charity Bloodrun EVS who provide an emergency voluntary courier service to North East NHS hospitals.

The charity, staffed by unpaid volunteers, transports blood and other vital resources and is currently in the process of raising much needed funds to purchase a new motorbike to enable it to continue providing the invaluable service.

The port operator’s affinity with Bloodrun EVS came to light earlier in 2021 when Mel Sykes, a Team Leader in PD Ports’ Unitised department and Bloodrun volunteer, secured a £250 donation for the charity through the company’s internal staff support scheme which provides funding to local initiatives close to the hearts of its people.

Upon hearing about the charities need to purchase a new bike, PD Ports upped its original donation to £1000 in a bid to try and help the charity reach their target quicker.

Frans Calje, CEO at PD Ports, said:

“It’s hugely important that we focus on delivering support to charities who provide vital services to our local communities. Since the inception of our internal staff support scheme, Find it. Fund it., we have donated in excess of £200,000 to local initiatives that matter most to our people.

“I’m delighted that, through that scheme, we have been able to make such a significant donation to Bloodrun EVS that will enable them to continue their incredible work.”

Anth Finegan, Chair of Bloodrun EVs, explained what the donation means to them:

“We are very grateful to PD Ports for this donation,” said Anth. “Bloodrun EVS has been a registered local charity for over a decade now, operating wholly thanks to volunteers, and providing a free courier service to the Tees Valley NHS Hospitals and trusts, especially out of normal working hours.

“Our latest statistics show that in recent years we have halved the cost of taxi and private courier use to the trusts, and last year we responded to 4,650 calls covering a total of 154,030 miles. We have 80 volunteers giving their spare time 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, so come rain, snow or shine we are determined to help NHS patients.”

To find out more on how you can help Bloodrun EVS, or to donate, please click here.