Employees from the Kent region of Vistry Group, Britain’s biggest housebuilder, have embarked on a series of challenges in aid of SSAFA, the Armed Forces charity.

Vistry Kent staff raised £32,282 after taking part in a variety of events throughout the year, including a golf day and clay pigeon shoot, ice bucket challenge and Halloween quiz.

SSAFA, which is Vistry’s national charity of the year for 2024, works to provide a range of physical and emotional support to serving military personnel, veterans and their families.

As part of the company’s nationwide Tri-Force Trials, Vistry Kent colleagues took part in a week of activities relating to ice, water and earth, which raised £3,700. Each site hosted an ice bucket challenge, some staff members headed to St Andrews Lakes near Rochester to take part in watersports such as paddle boarding and kayaking, while others chose to take on a cycling challenge which involved riding the exercise bike at the regional head office in Kings Hill.

The golf and clay pigeon shooting day took place in May at Dale Hill Hotel and Golf Club in Ticehurst and raised £26,500 towards the overall total. The event began with a breakfast before the golfers teed off and those taking part in the clay pigeon shooting headed to Arena Pursuits in Flimwell. The two groups then finished the day off with dinner, drinks and a charity auction.

Two office breakfast mornings, one in June and another in September, contributed a combined £240 towards the total, while a Euros sweepstake and Halloween-themed quiz both raised £120 each.

Mary McHutchison, Vistry Kent’s regional sales director, said: “The team have put in an incredible amount of effort over the year to raise so much money for the company’s national charity. Whether it was braving a freezing cold bucket of ice, organising the fantastic charity golf day, or pedalling hard on the exercise bike, every staff member has played their part.

“All the events have been great fun and helped us to become even stronger as a team. And knowing that we have been raising money for such a worthy and important charity as SSAFA has made it even more rewarding.”

To find out more about SSAFA, visit www.ssafa.org.uk.