A Southminster firm which is a leadng medical device manufacturer has made Farleigh Hospice its charity of the year for 2021.

Europlaz selected the charity following a company-wide vote. The company asked its staff to nominate a charity for it to support this year. The top four charities based on nominations were then put forward for staff to select their favourite, and Farleigh Hospice was the winner.

Denise Allen, marketing and communications manager at Europlaz, said: "We pride ourselves on being an open organisation - our culture is that everyone has a voice.

"This is why it was important that our chosen charity was selected by the staff. We are always keen to work with local charities as it is important to us to give back to the community. As a medical device manufacturer, we feel there is great a synergy between what we do and hospice care, so we are delighted that our team voted for Farleigh Hospice for us to support in 2021."

The company is looking at a combination of virtual and face-to-face ways to fundraise, due to the current Covid-19 restrictions still in place. Once social mixing is allowed again, the company will reassess its fundraising plans and hopes to be able to hold regular bake sales as well as a summer barbeque.

Michelle Martin, corporate fundraiser at Farleigh Hospice said: "We'd like to say a big thank you to everyone at Europlaz for voting for Farleigh Hospice to be the charity of the year.

"We look forward to seeing what fundraising activities they undertake for us. Every penny raised will go towards helping Farleigh Hospice provide care and support for people in the mid Essex community affected by life-limiting illness and bereavement, free of charge."

Europlaz Technologies is a leading manufacturer of medical devices and drug delivery devices. For more information about Europlaz visit the company's website using the link here.