Bellway gives £1,000 boost to Gillingham teenager’s fundraising effort for air ambulance services

Bellway gives £1,000 boost to Gillingham teenager's fundraising effort for air ambulance services

Publication Date: 28-11-2025 09:00

Bellway gives £1,000 boost to Gillingham teenager's fundraising effort for air ambulance services

A Gillingham teenager who is dedicated to raising money for the air ambulance cause has had a fundraising boost from local homebuilder Bellway, which gave her £1,000.

Chloe-Anne Hackett, 15, raises money for the Kent Surrey Sussex Air Ambulance and the National Children's Air Ambulance, by selling items such as bookmarks, jewellery, pens and hair accessories, at craft markets and on her own website.

Bellway, which is building homes across Kent including in Maidstone and Rainham, heard about her efforts and decided to boost her fundraising total by handing over the donation on Monday 10 November.

Chloe-Anne's mum Steph Hackett said: "We were in sheer disbelief when we received the email about the donation. To know that such an organisation as Bellway has seen what she is doing and felt compelled to help her was brilliant.

"Chloe-Anne could not stop grinning when she heard about it. It was such a boost for her. It took her completely by surprise, but it meant so much to her."

Chloe-Anne, who is home educated, became fascinated by the service after studying the Air Ambulance as a topic. When she learned all about their work and the fact that they depend almost entirely on donations in order to operate, she decided she wanted to help.

She set herself a target of raising £1,000 for the KSS Air Ambulance in 2023 and the organisation said that if she achieved that, they would show her around their base. She hit the target and enjoyed going on the tour.

She followed that up last year by expanding her scope to raise money for the National Children's Air Ambulance as well, and set herself the target of £2,000, which she also achieved.

This year she hopes to raise £5,100 to split between the two air ambulance services, and the Bellway donation has brought her latest fundraising figure for the year to around £3,000.

Bellway Kent Sales Director Mark Harrop said: "Chloe-Anne is an absolute star. Her dedication to helping others is an inspiration and she is making a real difference to the work of the KSS Air Ambulance and the National Children's Air Ambulance.

"It's a pleasure to add to her fundraising with this donation and to help her move towards her 2025 target for this extremely worthwhile cause."

Chloe-Anne has been interested in the emergency services since she was seven years old, when she suffered an asthma attack during the severe cold weather of February 2018 - dubbed the 'Beast from the East' - and an ambulance was sent out to her with a nebuliser. Since then, she has dreamed of one day becoming a paramedic.

During the pandemic she started her first big effort to help those who provide vital services by putting together Christmas gift boxes for them. She began creating the boxes at the end of 2021 handing out 100 containing items such as tea, coffee, hot chocolate, sweets, biscuits, hand cream and lip balm. They also contain a card with a positive affirmation or thank you message.

From those early days nervously approaching a fire station or an ambulance crew with some boxes alongside her mum, the effort has grown each year. Now, she and her mum and her dad Paul Wisdom plan to deliver around 2,000 boxes this December to workers in the NHS, and emergency services as well as those who work for National Highways.

Steph said: "Getting involved in these things has changed her completely. It's given her confidence, and she has learned a lot through it."

They distribute most of the boxes on Christmas Eve. In an effort that would impress even Father Christmas, the family set off early in the morning and drive all over the area delivering parcels until well into the evening.

The items in the boxes are all donated via an Amazon Wish List and Chloe-Anne turns the family living room into a production line throughout December as all the boxes are filled ready to be given out.

Mark said: "Members of our sales team will also be helping with the deliveries this year, assisting Chloe-Anne with getting these gifts into the hands of keyworkers."

To support Chloe-Anne's fundraising for the KSS Air Ambulance and the National Children's Air Ambulance visit https://airambulancefundraiser.co.uk/ and to donate items to Chloe-Anne's Christmas box deliveries visit https://www.amazon.co.uk/hz/wishlist/ls/XQII2KMHWZDQ?ref_=wl_share.

For information about the new homes Bellway is building at developments in Kent, visit https://www.bellway.co.uk/new-homes/kent.