The Newcastle Rugby Foundation was honoured to be chosen by the committee to receive a generous donation from The Dunelm Foundation and was delighted to attend the annual Dunelm Foundation Reception at the beginning of this year.

The Dunelm Foundation, established in 2019, is a charitable organisation that aims to support various local causes. The foundation raises funds primarily through Durham’s flagship annual sportsperson dinner.

This year, the dinner was graced by the presence of Niall Quinn, a renowned football player, who gave an impressive talk about his career and experiences.

During the reception, a cheque was presented to the Social Inclusion Manager and lead of the HITZ programme, David Shotton. The HITZ programme is Newcastle Rugby Foundation’s employability and enrichment programme and is delivered in partnership with Newcastle College and Premiership Rugby.

It aims to re-engage young people in education and employability using sport as a vehicle and is designed to help young people develop vital life skills and improve their career prospects.

Chairman of The Dunelm Foundation, Phil Hourigan said “We spend all year planning our fundraising dinner and then it takes us about an hour to give all the proceeds away! Newcastle Rugby Foundation was chosen as one of the recipients given the fantastic work it does in the community.

In total, we gave away £21,000 to 15 great causes and we do not doubt that NRF will put our donation to good use.”

The cheque was presented by Mike Stephenson, who has been on the Board of Trustees of the Newcastle Rugby Foundation since 2006. The donation was a testament to the foundation’s hard work and the impact it has on the local community.

The Newcastle Rugby Foundation is grateful to the Dunelm Foundation for its support and dedication to organisations like theirs. The foundation recognises the importance of such donations and how they help deliver their services to the community.

The 2024 dinner will be held at Ramside Hall Hotel on Friday October 4 and the guest speaker will be former international rugby referee, Nigel Owens MBE.

Please contact Phil Hourigan by emailing phh@swinburnemaddison.co.uk for ticket information.