Commercial property specialist, Mather Jamie, has let premises on behalf of clients to The Air Ambulance Service in Kegworth, after the charity signed a five-year lease on industrial/office premises covering 12,154 sq ft.
The charity’s new central base comprises self-contained secure office and warehouse space on Side Ley, which will become a storage and redistribution centre for donations, including clothing, toys and books.
The move has also created five new roles for The Air Ambulance Service.
Alex Reid, Director at Mather Jamie, says, “We are pleased to have agreed with The Air Ambulance Service a new tenancy of the Side Ley premises in Kegworth, which will serve as an ideal base for the charity for the next five years, and we have been able to secure a good tenant for our Landlord clients.
“The substantial factory site generated enquiries from local businesses due to the flexibility of the accommodation and its strong location in Kegworth, which is just one mile from Junction 24 of the M1.”
The Air Ambulance Service, which receives no Government funding, operates three services, including the Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Rutland, the Warwickshire and Northamptonshire Air Ambulance and the recently launched Children’s Air Ambulance, which operates nationally.
Kerry Martin, Retail Operations Manager at The Air Ambulance Service, comments: “Having a single retail base is a new concept for The Air Ambulance Service, but is something we need in order to continue to grow our retail department.
“Prior to leasing the premises in Kegworth, we were working out of our charity office in Princethorpe, Warwickshire, which did not provide us with the space or the easy access we required to support the redistribution of donations to our 24 charity shops around the country.
“The mix of storage and office space suits our requirements and going forward will allow us to prepare stock for our growing number of charity shops.
“It costs The Air Ambulance Service £1.7m per year to run each of its services and as it receives no Government or Lottery funding these charity shops help to fund this vital service.
“We now have nine staff members based at Side Ley; as a result of the move we have already created five new roles and will be looking to recruit apprentices and volunteers in the future.”
