Air Ambulance charity opens Braintree high street shop

The shop, which is owned by the trust, held a small ceremony on the afternoon of Wednesday, July 24, following a week of trading.

The event was attended by members of Braintree council, as well as Lord Lieutenant of Essex Jennifer Tolhurst and trust CEO Jane Gurney

Mrs Gurney said: “Opening shops like this is really important to EHAAT.

“We are a charity, and without access to National Lottery funding and only limited support from Government, we rely on the generosity and the goodwill of the people and businesses of communities across Essex and Hertfordshire.

“Without the support we receive, we would not be flying and saving lives.”

It costs about £750,000 per month to fund the charity, which is responsible for sending medical helicopters to emergencies across the two counties.

The trust has three other shops in Essex and five in Hertfordshire, alongside several clothing banks.

“Our branch managers are employed by the charity but the rest of the people working in the shops are volunteers,” said Donna Lee, head of retail at the trust.

“This shop took £2,500 in the first week of trading. On average our shops generate about £77,000 a year for us.”

Like many of the trust’s other stores, the Braintree branch will sell clothes, linen, bric-a-brac, toys, china ornaments and more.

It also relies on donations from the public and it gets about 65 per cent of its funding from its Flight for Life lottery scheme.

“We have a five-year growth plan and hope to get up to 20 to 25 stores,” Donna said.

“What we want is for our charity shops to be more than shops but also hubs in the community.”

The shop is located at 90 High Street, Braintree, and will be open Monday to Saturday, 9am to 4pm.

For more information on volunteering opportunities with the charity, please contact volunteer manager Jane Morton on 0345 2417 690 or at jane.morton@ehaat.org or visit ehaat.org/volunteer.