H&M raises £1m for Unicef UK through plastic bag charge
Melanie May | 30 May 2017 | News
H&M UK has raised £1million for Unicef UK through its 5p customer plastic bag charge.
Since the 5p plastic bag charge was introduced in 2015, H&M has donated the money raised through its bags to Unicef UK’s Children’s Emergency Fund, which helps children caught up in life-threatening emergencies.
The donation of carrier bag charges to Unicef UK is part of a wider global partnership that has raised approximately $22 million for Unicef’s programmes for children since 2004. H&M has also activated till point donations for Unicef UK’s Nepal Earthquake and Philippines Typhoon Haiyan emergency appeals. More recently, Unicef’s partnership with the H&M Foundation is supporting a global effort in early childhood development and education, enabling children to get the best possible start in life.
Kate Goldman-Toomey, director of partnerships and philanthropy at Unicef UK, said:
“At a time when children are facing so many crises around the world from conflicts to food crises in places like Yemen and South Sudan, the donation of £1 million from H&M UK has enabled Unicef to carry out vital work to ensure that vulnerable children can survive and thrive.”
Last August, Charities Aid Foundation reported that at least £29m had been raised in total for good causes by the plastic bag levy in its first six months. CAF itself had distributed almost £10m to charities including RSPB, Breast Cancer Now, and Unicef from retailers including Aldi, Marks & Spencer and Sainsbury’s.
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About Melanie May
Melanie May is a journalist and copywriter specialising in writing both for and about the charity and marketing services sectors since 2001. She can be reached via thepurplepim.com.