Rollits ramps up support for charities with a full house and close contest at annual golf day

From left, Brian Deehan of MDUK, Julian Wild and Pat Coyle of Rollits, Jonny Bottomley of Dove House Hospice and Susanne Driffield of MDUK.

Businesses from across the region joined forces to again support the work of two popular charities at a golf day which has raised thousands of pounds over nearly four decades.

Fundraisers from Dove House Hospice and Muscular Dystrophy UK (MDUK) told of the difference made by the event over the last 37 years. 

Corporate competitors, who produced one of the closest contests in the event’s history, insisted their priority was promoting good causes rather than pursuing prizes.

Organisers Rollits LLP were delighted with the turnout and the tight finish. Pat Coyle, Marketing and Client Relations Director at the firm which operates out of Hull and York, said: “The level of interest from our clients and contacts was enormous and we were actually over-subscribed!

“But we managed to fit everybody in and the all-round effort from everyone concerned enabled us to raise over £4,500, which will be shared by the charities.

“We are enormously grateful to everybody who entered a team, to all the sponsors who supported the event and to Brough Golf Club, who were excellent hosts once again. We’ll be back there for our 38th event on Thursday, 3 July 2025 and are already encouraging everybody to save the date in their golfing calendars.”

Rollits has now raised nearly £160,000 over the years from 36 golf days and one Covid-enforced virtual event. Brian Deehan, of MDUK’s East Yorkshire branch, has attended around 20 of the golf days.

He said: “There are now 11 treatments for muscular dystrophy which are available on the NHS which is more than ever before and it’s all down to fundraising events like this.”

Susanne Driffield, the charity’s Regional Development Manager for the north of England and east Midlands, was attending her fifth event. She added: “This is the flagship event in our region. It really helps because it’s regular, it’s reliable and with Pat and her team organising it everything becomes much easier for us.

“As well as the fundraising, on the day itself we can talk to local businesses about MD UK which is priceless for a charity like ours which isn’t particularly well known. The more people we can talk to the better.”

Jonny Bottomley, Partnership Development Fundraiser for Dove House, added: “This is a great way for Rollits to support the charity and it’s built up great continuity over the years. It’s really helpful when companies do something like this because it’s not the sort of event that we can put on ourselves.

“It’s incredibly important in terms of supporting the work we do, providing care for those with life limiting illnesses and supporting families and others and ensuring people keep their dignity. 

“There are some new businesses here and some people we haven’t seen for a long time and it’s really good to re-connect with them. It creates opportunities to have a conversation and think about how we can work in partnership with each other.”

On the course, teams from Victory Leisure Homes and Walker Modular tied for first place on 84, with Victory living up to their name on a countback over the last three holes.

James Doyle, Group Managing Director of the Rix Group, and captain of the Victory team said: “We have been working with Rollits for more than a hundred years, the firm has been supporting the golf day for more than 20 years and I’ve been playing for six or seven years.

“We enjoy the golf, getting to spend time with other businesses, networking and most important of all supporting good causes. We do a lot of charitable work ourselves whether it’s tables at dinners, events like this, sponsoring local football teams, three peaks challenge, cycle rides, a whole suite of activities.”

Phil Trotter, Development Director at Hull-based bathroom pod manufacturer Walker Modular, was leading his team on their debut in the competition.

He said: “We were invited last year but didn’t manage to get a team together so we put down a marker for this year. Everybody needs to get away from the office and something like this gives you the chance to meet other businesses and support some important charities.

“We work with a lot of charities ourselves but they tend to be smaller projects, maybe linked to people and businesses in our supply chain who can’t organise big events like this.”

Richard Field, Senior Partner at Rollits added “We always look forward to taking part in our Charity Golf day and this year was no exception. We were thrilled to have 26 teams join us for this year's tournament and I’d like to thank all our sponsors, players, and volunteers for making it possible to organise this event year on year. We look forward to seeing you all in July 2025.”