Reform Flooring Supports Local Charity NorLSAR

Posted on: 3rd March 2016

We are a company with firm ties to the Norfolk community, and last week we were pleased to help out local charity NorLSAR with a donation of carpet tiles to furnish their new water rescue base in Wroxham.

Reform Flooring’s Donation

Norfolk Lowland Search and Rescue (NorLSAR), a local charity who work to find missing people and carry out rescues in lowland Britain, contacted us and told us that they were setting up a new water rescue base nearby. They asked if we could donate any spare carpet tiles to help them turn the base into a functional space, and we were more than happy to help.

Reform Flooring’s Robin Eglen explains:

“We had some spare carpet tiles in the store not doing anything, so we decided to put them to good use. We managed to sort out nine boxes of various colours which NorLSAR were more than happy with.”

Jim Whiteside, NorLSAR’s Fundraising Officer, says that the donation has made a big impact on NorLSAR’s new base:

“The ‘crew room’ was initially a cold uninviting space with a painted concrete floor. The kind donation of carpet tiles from Reform Flooring has transformed it into a much more welcoming area and more in keeping with the image we like to project to visitors. We are indebted to community spirited companies such as Reform Flooring for the support they give to small local charities such as ourselves.”

About NorLSAR

NorLSAR are a team of volunteers. Their main role is to assist Norfolk Police to search for missing vulnerable people, but they also work closely with Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service (NFRS) to deal with flooding and water rescue. NorLSAR works 24 hours a day, 365 days a year – but as a charity, they rely on donations to provide their vital service.

Jim says:

“We receive no statutory funding, and are totally reliant on donations and grant funding to enable us to carry out our work.”

NorLSAR’s New Wroxham Base

NorLSAR recently received a grant of £39,372 from the Department of Transport as part of their inshore and inland rescue boat grant scheme. This grant has enabled NorLSAR to increase their flood and water rescue capability with a new boat and support vehicle, and they are setting up a new water rescue base to support the expansion of their water rescue services.

Jim explains:

“Our new Wroxham base is an example of how we are integrating within existing NFRS capabilities – it’s a building immediately behind Wroxham Fire Station and has previously been used for storage and training. We will keep our two boats, a vehicle and all our water rescue equipment there, and it will be a base of operations for all water-based activities ideally placed to cover the Norfolk Broads.”

Find out more about NorLSAR’s fantastic work on their website, and like their Facebook page to stay updated with the work on their new base.