Aylesbury Wilkos steps in to help family

The Bullivant family, based in Waddesdon, have had a difficult year as Dad and husband, Ian, suffered a series of strokes alongside being diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumour.

This inevitably had a major effect on the family’s day-to-day life, with Ian struggling to walk and speak most days.

Whereas Ian had once been part of a round-the-world yachting team, his life became bound to the downstairs of the house, none of which was wheelchair friendly.

This is when Sandy, wife to Ian and mother of their two teenage children reached out to her local community for help.

Upon hearing of the Bullivant’s story, their local wilko store in Aylesbury jumped at the chance to do their bit.

The local community, galvanised by the Facebook community group Women ran by Nikki Szuca, banded together in true DIY SOS-style, and heroically raised £20,000 to make a life-changing transformation to the downstairs bathroom, converting it into a fully accessible, disabled wet room for Ian.

Upon hearing of the family’s plea for help from local businesses and stores, the wilko Aylesbury team compiled a donation of home and decorating supplies to give the bathroom the all-important finishing touches.

Jerome Saint-Marc, wilko CEO, said: “We know that family life is so important to our hard-working customers which is why the Aylesbury team were so keen to help when they heard of Ian’s story. The store team were happy to be able to assist in this project which will bring ease and stability to the family’s daily routine.

“We’re incredibly proud of and thankful to our local team members, as well as those across the entire business, who have done a phenomenal job in ensuring hardworking families and individuals have access to the products they need, and we appreciate the extra mile they’re going here to support local causes and communities throughout the UK.”

This donation is one of many projects wilko is undertaking to support communities during the Covid-19 crisis. Other activities include launching a £125,000 community fund, donating thousands of products to families in need and NHS staff and enabling members of its Worksop support centre staff to volunteer for a helpline for elderly people who may feel isolated.