Big brands help FareShare provide meals, plus more partnership news
![Schoolchildren eating during a lunchbreak](https://fundraising.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/children-eating-during-lunchbreak-1-768x512.jpeg)
Vitabiotics Wellkid, Arla, and Nestlé are all supporting FareShare by funding or providing food for meals – more on this and other corporate partnerships below.
VOLT and Beder partner on mental health work
British e-bike brand VOLT has announced a partnership with mental health and suicide prevention charity Beder. Together, they aim to tackle the stigma surrounding mental health and build further awareness by celebrating the benefits of e-biking.
VOLT has wrapped and donated one of its Metro models in Beder’s signature teal colourway. This will be taken up and down the country by the Beder team and its ambassadors, to raise awareness of the importance of mental health and encourage people to get in the saddle to support their wellbeing. To kick off the partnership on the 16 of June, a team of Beder riders on VOLT bikes are set to take part in the British Heart Foundation’s London to Brighton cycle ride. The two organisations also have plans on the horizon for World Suicide Prevention Day in September and World Mental Health Day in October.
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TransUnion UK partners with Andy’s Man Club to raise awareness about men’s mental health
UK credit reference agency TransUnion has partnered with Andy’s Man Club across its Leeds and London offices. Over 100 employees will participate in the Yorkshire Three Peaks challenge today to raise money for the charity.
Andy’s Man Club was chosen by the vast majority of the TransUnion UK team, who were given the opportunity to vote for a charity that the business would support for the next 12 months.
Expedia to fundraise for SSAFA as part of new partnership
SSAFA, the Armed Forces charity has announced a partnership with Expedia Group, launching with a donation of US$20,000 (approximately £15,800). Jenny King, Corporate Development Manager of SSAFA, collected the donation from the Expedia Group office in London.
Expedia Group will be hosting SSAFA Big Brew Ups and other fundraisers. EG has its Armed Forces network (VETS IBG, the Veterans at Expedia Group and Their Supports Inclusion Business Group), and Joanna Patterson, who leads these, will also be taking part in the SSAFA Vietnam trek in September. SSAFA has a successful mentoring scheme for service leavers, and SSAFA staff recently attended a careers fair at EG HQ.
Advancetrack pledges initial £5k to help Midlands charity feed region’s homeless children
West Midlands-based accountancy outsourcing firm, Advancetrack, has announced a new charity partnership with Midland Langar Seva Society.
Donating an initial £5,000, the firm will provide hot food and drink to those living on the poverty line, supporting around 180 people per day – 5,000 across the next month. The partnership follows Advancetrack’s pledge to donate damages received by the firm from a recent high-profile court case, in which a competitor infringed its trademark.
dryrobe® extends partnership with the RNLI to raise funds for water safety
dryrobe® has announced an extension to its partnership with the RNLI. Since the partnership was announced last year, dryrobe® has raised more than £200,000, exceeding its target of £100,000 a year. Building on this success, dryrobe® is committed to hitting the target annually for a further two years, reinforcing its dedication to the RNLI’s life-saving mission.
As part of the partnership, dryrobe® will be attending the RNLI’s 200th anniversary at the Lifeboat Festival, which takes place on the 18th May 2024. To mark the occasion, dryrobe® have launched a special edition robe, with proceeds going towards the RNLI’s vital services.
Zoggs & RNLI announce partnership to raise funds & awareness
The partnership will see Zoggs raise funds for the charity via the sale of co-branded swim products, including goggles, swim buoys and swim caps. Zoggs will also raise awareness of the RNLI’s work by sharing water safety messaging with their customers.
The following co-branded Zoggs and RNLI products from the swimwear brand’s website now; Silicone Caps, Little Cadet Goggles, Bondi Junior Goggles, Mini Kickboard, Hi Viz Sim Buoy Xlite and Hi Viz Swim Buoy. £1.50 for example, will be donated to the RNLI for every Mini Kickboard sold, and £1 from each sale of the RNLI-branded Silicone Swim Caps.
Arla and Nestlé partner to donate equivalent of 1.25 million breakfasts with FareShare
Arla and Nestlé are to donate the equivalent of 1.25 million breakfasts to FareShare. Arla and Nestlé are both part of the Coronation Food Project, which was launched in November 2023 and supports FareShare’s goal to bring together businesses from across the food industry to collaborate on new ways to address food insecurity and reduce food waste.
Arla will be providing Cravendale milk and Nestlé will be providing cereal, including Shreddies, to contribute towards breakfasts for organisations supporting vulnerable and disadvantaged people in the UK. The partnership builds on a longstanding relationship between FareShare and Arla that has seen them divert the equivalent of 10 million meals to help feed and support those in need across the UK, while Nestlé has been working with FareShare since 2005 to redistribute quality surplus products, so far contributing to providing the equivalent of more than six million meals.
Virgin Media O2 teams up with Sense for employee volunteering
As part of a new 12-month programme, Virgin Media O2 is inviting its 15,000 strong workforce to join Sense’s ‘Virtual Buddying’ service to support those who are at risk of isolation and loneliness. The service matches a volunteer with a disabled person, based on their shared interests, to carry out activities together online.
Virgin Media O2’s employees can use their five annual paid volunteering days to take part in the initiative, and commit at least one hour per week for six months to keep in touch with someone who is disabled through video calls. The initiative forms part of Virgin Media O2’s sustainability strategy, the Better Connections Plan, and its goal to support 1 million people in communities across the UK by the end of 2025, as part of its Take Five employee volunteering programme. New figures show more than 225,000 people have been supported by Virgin Media O2 employees since 2022.
Vitabiotics Wellkid to fund meals in two-year partnership with FareShare
Vitabiotics Wellkid and FareShare have joined forces in a partnership that will see Vitabiotics Wellkid fund the equivalent of 110,000 meals to FareShare.
The partnership will also shine a light on the critical role nutrition plays in children’s overall wellbeing, both physically and mentally. By emphasising the transformative impact of nourishing food on physical and mental well-being, Vitabiotics Wellkid and FareShare hope to inspire broader conversations and actions around supporting the holistic development of all children.
Screwfix Foundation donates £20k to project improving living conditions for young people
The Screwfix Foundation and Volunteer It Yourself (VIY) are working together to support the local community of Dagenham by fixing and improving a property run by Outreach Homes. With a grant of £21,000 from the Screwfix Foundation, VIY will deliver the refurbishment of the property, while mentoring young people disengaged or excluded from mainstream education to learn a trade skill by helping to fix local community spaces and places.
The Screwfix Foundation and VIY will work together to create a welcoming environment at Outreach Homes by renovating multiple areas of the building, including re-painting, and installing new flooring in communal areas, bedrooms, offices, and kitchen. The project started on 13 May and will take approximately 3-4 weeks to complete, with volunteers needed. Tradespeople, multi-trade and serious DIYers from the local area are welcome to help for as little as one day, by mentoring young people, sharing skills, and supporting their community for a good cause.