Hermitage Grange

Proud To Support Great Causes in Helensburgh.

We help encourage Primary One pupils in Helensburgh to walk to school

In support of International Walk to School month this October, we donated high visibility snap bands to Primary One pupils at Colgrain Primary and Hermitage Primary, Helensburgh. The annual initiative, organised by UK charity Living Streets, aims to encourage families to leave the car at home and walk to school safely.

According to research by Living Streets, less than half of all school children are currently walking to school, a drop from 70% a generation ago.* The research also found that children who exercise before school arrive refreshed and ready to learn and Linda Candlish, Deputy Headteacher at Colgrain Primary, agrees: “It’s really important to us that our pupils are happy and engaged when they arrive at school and walking is a great way for them to start the day. We want to encourage children and their parents to walk to school and the high visibility snap bands donated by Taylor Wimpey will help our Primary Ones to do this more safely.”

Mrs McMurdo, Deputy Headteacher at Hermitage Primary adds: “As well as promoting a healthy lifestyle to students, walking to school is also a huge help in reducing the volume of traffic outside school, thereby making the area safer for all. I would like to say a big thank you to Taylor Wimpey for this donation and for their help in raising awareness of Walk to School Month among our Primary one pupils and their parents.”

Kirsty McGill, Head of Sales for Taylor Wimpey West Scotland, says: “International Walk to School Month is a fantastic initiative and we are proud to be supporting it again this year. We hope that our donation of snap bands to Colgrain and Hermitage Primary Schools will help to encourage children to lead a healthy lifestyle, while staying safe on their walk to school.”

Taylor Wimpey has donated over 65,000 snap bands to school children around the UK since 2014 as part of its commitment to giving back to the local communities in which it builds.

The winners of our second Community Chest initiative are announced

The Community Advertiser readers from across the Helensburgh area nominated their worthy causes to win a share of £1,000.  In first place, we are delighted to confirm that Local Vocals has won £500; in second place £300 has been awarded to Gareloch Riding for the Disabled, and finally GRP Community First Responders have secured £200.  Each of the groups will use their cash boost from us to carry on their vital work and support in the local area.

On receiving the cash award, Alison Gildea, Local Vocals Co-ordinator said: “We are absolutely delighted to receive the cheque. The money will go towards improving our song sheets, transport to events and perhaps even some percussion instruments. Thank you so much to Taylor Wimpey and the Community Advertiser and of course everyone who voted for us. It means a great deal to us and is much appreciated!”

Kate, from Gareloch Riding for the Disabled adds: “The Gareloch Group are thrilled to receive 2nd prize for the Community Chest. We wish to send a big thank you to everyone who voted for us. Unlike other 'equipment', our horses cannot simply be put away when not in use. They continue to require care and attention every day of the year. This generous prize will go towards their upkeep and wellbeing. Thank you from us all at Gareloch RDA.”

GRP Community First Responders Coordinator, John Webb, said: “Thank you very much to everyone who voted for the Garelochhead and Rosneath Community First Responders. The money will be a big help for maintaining the 11 public access defibrillators we have installed around the Peninsula.”

Kirsty McGill, Head of Sales for Taylor Wimpey West Scotland, adds: “Once again our Community Chest project has offered us a great way to recognise the unsung heroes that are found in the local communities where we build new homes. This is our second year of running this initiative with The Community Advertiser, and it makes our team incredibly proud to have the opportunity to make this type of donation that goes right to the heart of making a difference locally. We’re thrilled for each of these local deserving causes, and thank you to everyone who took the opportunity to take part.”

Caroline makes a stress-free move next door to Taylor Wimpey with Part Exchange

Caroline Porter from Helensburgh has realised her dream of owning a new home by moving literally next door to Hermitage Grange, a development on the doorstep of their former property, which is set in the grounds of the former Hermitage Academy, where she attended as a teenager.

Owning a new home was something that Caroline, a nurse based in West Scotland, has always relished as she explains: “I’ve always just wanted to live in a house that was brand new, and for it to have only ever been my house.  

“I’ve waited patiently for the right time for us to move, considering the best layout of home for our needs.  There were so many styles of home to choose from that initially I couldn’t decide which one was best.  So, I took the opportunity to visit some of the other local Taylor Wimpey show homes to get an idea of the size and layout of a range of homes.

We then reserved our new four bedroom detached Hume with Yvonne at Hermitage Grange.   I can’t quite believe that I’ve got everything that I’ve wanted in a home – style, space and layout.  It’s been a dream move and I just love my house.”

Using Taylor Wimpey’s Part Exchange scheme was really helpful and stress-free as Caroline adds: “Using part exchange made everything really simple and very straightforward.  My husband and I hadn’t moved in 21 years, so we had never gone through this type of process before.  But the team at Taylor Wimpey were great.  They put us at ease and took care of everything.  We received a fair market value for our old property and using the PX scheme meant that Taylor Wimpey was buying our home, so we had nothing to worry about at all.”

Read Caroline’s full story here

Babcock Helensburgh Women’s 10K winner picks up our new trophy

We are delighted to be the sponsor of a new trophy for the Babcock Helensburgh Women’s 10K for the next three years.  This year’s winner is Scottish international Annabel Simpson from Fife, running at inside 3.30 mins per kilometre she was rewarded with a course record of 34 mins and 48 seconds.

The Babcock Helensburgh 10K has run annually every year in May for the past 35 years, beginning life as part of the Polaroid 10K Series.  Since 2017, the race has been part of the three race Babcock 10K Series and this year it attracted over 700 participants, which included Olympian, club and recreational runners.

Susan McDonald, Sales Manager for Taylor Wimpey West Scotland adds: “We are proud to have become part of such an important local event in the Helensburgh calendar, and I was delighted to have the opportunity to present Annabel with the first Taylor Wimpey West Scotland Babcock Helensburgh Women’s 10K trophy.  She won the trophy in style with a course record, which I am sure will be hard to beat next year."

Children at Colgrain Primary celebrate our World Book Day donation 

Children at Colgrain Primary will soon be able to enjoy reading a collection of new books thanks to our donation of £250 and 100 copies of our own ‘How we build your new home with Millie Mortar and Handy Andy’ to the primary school in Helensburgh to mark World Book Day, which took place on Thursday 7th March.

Now in its 22nd year, World Book Day is a celebration of reading and aims to encourage children and young adults to come together to explore the pleasure of books. Johanna McClelland, Head Teacher at Colgrain Primary School, said: “Reading is such an important life skill, which is something that we encourage all of our children to do more of. Having new books to explore helps to keep up an enthusiasm for reading and we would like to thank Taylor Wimpey for their kind donation. We can’t wait to add to our library and share new stories with each other.”

Kirsty McGill, Head of Sales for Taylor Wimpey West Scotland, said: “Books are a fantastic way for children to learn about the world around them and to feed their imaginations. We were delighted to offer a donation to Colgrain Primary School to help them to celebrate World Book Day, and we hope that the new books will be enjoyed for years to come.”

Primary School pupils get a lesson at our Hermitage Grange development in Helensburgh

Children from Hermitage Primary have been given an exciting opportunity to see the new homes that are under construction at our Hermitage Grange development in Helensburgh as part of their ‘Houses and Homes’ project in school.

Read the full story here.

We Sponsor A New Trophy For The Babcock Helensburgh Women’s 10K

As part of our ongoing commitment to working in partnership with local communities, we have become the sponsor of a new trophy that will be presented to the winner of the Babcock Helensburgh Women’s 10K for the next three years.  Our sponsorship during this period will also provide £125 prize money annually.

We give a fundraising boost to local bowling club in Helensburgh

As part of our ongoing commitment to working in partnership with local communities, we have recently donated £500 to Colgrain Bowling Club in Helensburgh.  The money will provide a boost to its fundraising towards repairing the clubhouse roof, which will help to make sure they can continue to offer their valuable support to the local community. 

Our £1,000 Community Chest Winners Are Revealed

We’re delighted to announce the winners of our Community Chest initiative in association with the Helensburgh Community Advertiser. Readers of the Community Advertiser nominated their worthy causes from the local area to win a share of £1,000.  The voting was tied for first place and joint awards of £400 each have been made to Grey Matters and Helensburgh and Lomond Autism.  The remaining £200 was awarded to Visiting Friends SCIO.