Staff at The International Stock Exchange (TISE) gave up their time and raised £2,700 during 2017 to support Guernsey charity, The Ivy Trust.

The Ivy Trust supports parents who have experienced the loss of a baby either during pregnancy or soon after birth. It was chosen by TISE staff as their charity of the year for 2017.

During that time, the staff helped with projects, such as the upkeep of the Ivy Remembrance Garden at the Princess Elizabeth Hospital and raised more than £1,350 for the charity through a range of activities, including cake sales, meat draws, raffles, soup days, the Credit Suisse-led Hel(l)vetia Challenge and a stall at the West Show.

This amount was matched by the business to take the total raised during the year to just over £2,700. That is already being put to use through the provision of a new book called Saying Goodbye by Zoe Clark Coates.

Jayne White, a trustee of The Ivy Trust, said: “We were delighted when TISE approached us a year ago about being their charity of choice in 2017. I’d like to thank the staff who have given up their time to help us in a variety of different ways and raise such a fantastic sum of money.

“The support we offer to parents includes financial grants and we work very closely with the Midwifery Service to maintain a dedicated room for bereaved parents on Loveridge Ward and assist in supplying them with equipment to ensure the most vulnerable babies have the best possible chance of survival.

“In 2018 we will be extending our support to parents who have experienced earlier stage losses and miscarriage. Following a recommendation from the Head of Midwifery we hope to be able to gift the Saying Goodbye book to all parents who would like a copy regardless of the gestation of their baby and I am delighted that we have now been able to use the money from TISE to fund the initial purchase of these books. We have recently received the first shipment of 250 which are now available for parents and families.”

“It has also been very rewarding to….see first-hand how these new books are going to benefit parents and families."

The Ivy Trust is named after the daughter of Shelley Samson and Colin Samson who was stillborn in 2012. They are the other two trustees of the charity.

It was nominated as a charity of the year by Cameron Craine, Manager in the Listings Admissions Department of the Exchange and a member of TISE’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Committee, who has the charity close to his heart.

Fiona Le Poidevin, CEO of The International Stock Exchange Group Limited (TISEG), said: “I am really pleased that TISE has been able to work with The Ivy Trust. It has been very interesting for all of us to learn more about its important work to support those who suffer the loss of a baby. It has also been very rewarding to be able to make a difference by assisting with projects and raising money, especially when we can see first-hand how these new books are going to benefit parents and families."

For more information about The Ivy Trust visit www.theivytrust.org or email theivytrust@suremail.gg.

TISE staff have chosen Guernsey Mind as their charity of choice for 2018.