ALDERMORE ANNOUNCES THE BATTEN DISEASE FAMILY ASSOCIATION AS ITS CHARITY OF THE YEAR

 Aldermore employees have chosen the Batten Disease Family Association (BDFA) as their charity of the year for 2016. The Bank’s employees aim to raise £15,000 for the Hampshire-based charity which supports families, raises awareness and facilitates research into the group of fatal neurodegenerative diseases commonly known as Batten disease.

 Batten Disease is a life limiting disease which affects around 200 children and young people in the UK. The Batten Disease Family Association works with children, young people, families and professionals across the country.

 To select Aldermore’s charity of the year, employees nominated their favoured causes and the winning charity was chosen by means of a vote amongst Aldermore’s employees. The Batten Disease Family Association was nominated by employees from Aldermore’s Wilmslow Office whose friends have been impacted by the disease.

 Throughout the year, the Aldermore Community Team (ACT) will hold events to raise money for the Batten Disease Family Association. ACT was established in 2014 to drive fundraising activities and increase support for the local communities in which the Bank operates. Aldermore will match the amount raised at each event up to a maximum of £250 via its “pound for pound” scheme.

 James Radford, ‎Director, Group Operations at Aldermore, said: “Along with all my colleagues in the Aldermore Community Team, I am delighted to welcome the Batten Disease Family Association as Aldermore’s new charity partner for 2016. The charity does a great deal of excellent work to support those impacted by the disease and is especially close to the hearts of our employees in Wilmslow who have witnessed the devastating impact that Batten disease can have on families whose children are diagnosed with the condition. We are really excited about supporting BDFA’s activities with our fundraising initiatives throughout the year and hope to raise a lot of money for them.”

 Andrea West, Chief Executive of the Batten Disease Family Association, said: “As a relatively small charity working with families facing this devastating and little known diagnosis, we were really thrilled to be selected as Aldermore’s official charity partner for 2016. This is a vital partnership for us, which we know will help raise awareness and funds to continue our support for families and drive forward our work towards much needed therapies for Batten disease and a longed for cure.”