Lowe's has pledged $23.5 million towards the work of Habitat for Humanity International in a new five-year partnership between the two organisations.

The Christian housing charity and home improvement chain have been in collaboration with each other for more than a decade to build homes.

The $23.5 million pledged for the next phase of their partnership represents Lowe's largest corporate donation to date and brings the chain's total contributions to the charity to more than $63 million since 2003.

The relationship is not only financial, as Lowe's runs "how to" clinics and supports programmes aimed at getting more women involved in building.

It also runs a "Heroes" volunteer scheme with its own employees and over the years, staff have donated thousands of hours to help build homes.

"Habitat for Humanity has created a remarkable legacy by building and strengthening communities across America and around the world," said Lowe's chief executive Robert A Niblock.

"We have been honored to be a part of those projects over the past 10 years and are excited about the opportunity to broaden our reach and serve more families in the coming years."

Habitat chief executive Jonathan Reckford said Lowe's had been an "integral" part of the charity's work to strengthen families and revitalise communities across the US.

"We're so grateful to Lowe's for its past support and renewed commitment, and we look forward to this exciting new chapter of our partnership," he said.