Property Developer Gives £600,000 to Local Charities

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Profits from sale of three million pound Putney homes donated

In summer 2006, Charlotte Grobien from Putney, a property market novice, invested in three new houses with the intention of giving the profits to local charities. All 3 houses have been sold for in excess of £1 million and in total she has generated a £650,000 profit which she has already started to give away.

The first sale was made in December and money from that has been given to 7 charities. On January 27th Charlotte sold two more homes on Akehurst Street in Putney. Her lawyer did the conveyancing work for free and, although she was unable to persuade an estate agent to do the same, Warrens agreed to handle the sale for a reduced commission.

The organisations that have benefited include a nursery school for severely disabled children, a children’s hospice, motorised wheelchairs for those who will never walk, sports facilities for blind youngsters, home help aids for terminally ill children, alternative therapy treatments for teenage oncology patients and training, support and mentoring for disadvantaged teens who are educationally and socially deprived.

Whizz Kidz received a donation of £22,000 which was used to by special equipment including a sit/stand chair for Mille, a ten year old with a spinal cord condition and a Kimba cross buggy for Amelia, a five year old with cerebral palsy. Small Steps at Greenmead School has received £50,000 which has enabled them to increase their physio's hours and expand the number of hydrotherapy sessions on offer

Lucy Gardiner, is the managing director of Skilltrain a small, Wandsworth based charity specialising in 1:1 and small group projects with disengaged local young people. These individuals may also have been excluded from school or training or are at serious risk of exclusion. Lucy has several examples of children who have made major progress recently and she says. "These achievements are all thanks to Charlotte and Give It Away: these projects wouldn’t be happening without her. Her energy and enthusiasm have inspired all of us here as well as our clients. She has helped them to feel important and valued again. In their own words they have moved from 'being losers to being winners'".

Vicky Andreas of React, a local charity for seriously ill children which received £10,000 said, "‘Stephan, aged 17 with Muscular Dystrophy and a spinal fusion now has a special remote controlled bed allowing him to turn over at night, thus enabling him and his Mum to get a full night’s sleep. This will have an immediate impact on the quality of their lives’

Give it Away has also made a donation to the Shooting Stars Hospice for Children, Shaftesbury and Arethusa children’s homes and will be supporting a research programme at St George’s Tooting into Crohn’s disease.

February 22, 2007