Home Retail Group, owner of Argos, Homebase and Habitat, has reached the first £1 million milestone for Macmillan Cancer Support, since the launch of its two year partnership in March this year. The money will fund 42,814 hours of Macmillan nursing care for people affected by cancer.

This is one of Macmillan’s fastest growing charity of the year partnerships so far.

With a ‘Go Green, Go Macmillan‘ theme at launch in March 2015, stores, head office and distribution sites have hosted a wide range of events to raise funds. These include individual staff challenges like a sponsored walk of 11 of London’s iconic bridges.

More recently, participation in Macmillan’s flagship fundraising event World’s Biggest Coffee Morning raised over £121,000, taking the partnership past the £1 million fundraising milestone.

Collection weekend

Staff at stores across the country also hosted a national collection weekend in which 720 Macmillan volunteers joined staff to raise £86,755 across 264 stores in one weekend. Company staff also supported a Gold Medal-winning Homebase garden at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show, which was dedicated to Macmillan.

As part of Home Retail Group’s charity partnership, colleagues and customers of stores in the Republic of Ireland raised £45,171 (€60,449) for the Irish Cancer Society, helping to fund 3,022 hours of specialist cancer information, advice and support to each visitor to their Daffodil Centres.