Flintshire company rallies businesses for Ukranian aid mission

The P&A Group has coordinated partners and many local businesses to fill an articulated lorry with much-needed provisions such as non-perishable food, water, medical and first aid equipment.

Rhys Hughes, director at P&A Group, said: “One of our employees, Andrzej Dudziak, our Zest Polish sourcing co-ordinator, who is based near Gdansk, has been helping out at the Polish/Ukraine border a couple of nights a week and has been in contact with Caritas, the biggest charity in Poland which is also assisting at the border. Andrzej advised that, despite the huge amount of support already donated, aid is still required.

P&A Group and partner’s articulated lorry filled with Aid arriving and being unloaded at Caritas warehouse on the Polish and Ukraine border.

“One of the core principles of the P&A Group is that we want to positively contribute to the communities in which we operate. We receive timber garden products from Poland weekly into our Saltney warehouse for redistribution to garden centres across the UK, so this seemed a prime opportunity for us to demonstrate our support for the people on the ground at the Polish border and in Ukraine by providing transport and coordinating this humanitarian aid mission.”

An initial email appeal was sent by the P&A Group to local businesses, supply chain and customers of the P&A Pallet division requesting a list of items, ranging from medical dressings to thermal blankets to batteries and power banks to sleeping bags to non-perishable foods, nappies and sanitary products.

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Donations poured in and the P&A Group would like to thank the following companies for their support: Accrol (John Dale Site in Flint), BIC Innovation, Convatec, Flintshire County Council, Gap Recruitment, Harlech Foodservice Ltd, Heatons, H&C Howatson Ltd, Samco, SKAT Transportation, Turnaround Solutions, Workplace Worksafe Ltd.

Rhys added: “It’s fantastic to see so many local businesses, partners and friends of P&A come together to support the Ukraine Aid effort.

“The articulated lorry left our site on Thursday, August 11 and has now arrived at Caritas charity base on the border from where they will distribute into Ukraine.

“I’d like to say a big thank to our Supply Chain team of Andrzej, Piotr, Beth and Mark at P&A Group for co-ordinating the donations, warehousing and arranging logistics.”

Andrzej was at the border to receive the aid along with his son and said: “It was a long but definitely satisfying day unloading the wagon at the Caritas Warehouse. All were impressed and grateful for the goods, which are now being sorted as trucks are already organised to distribute across Ukraine. Thank you to everyone who has helped - amazing job guys!”