Diageo teams up with UK Men’s Sheds Association, plus more corporate partnership news
Who’s partnering with who? Here’s a round up of recent announcements, from Diageo’s partnership with UK Men’s Sheds Association, to Central Co-op choosing Samaritans as a partner.
![](https://fundraising.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/coop-samaritans-partnership.jpeg.webp)
Central Co-op announces new charity partnership with Samaritans
This Samaritans Awareness Day, Central Co-op has announced Samaritans as its new charity partner. Voted for by its Members and colleagues, Central Co-op will officially begin raising funds and awareness for the charity from October.
Advertisement
In March this year, Central Co-op began its search for a new charity partner, inviting national and regional registered charities to nominate themselves for the opportunity. Guided by the voices of its Members, Central Co-op focused its search on organisations dedicated to mental health support, with Samaritans receiving the most Member votes.
Aspray raises £1610 for ANDYSMANCLUB at National Conference
Aspray recently raised £1610 for ANDYSMANCLUB during its recent national conference. The funds were raised through a raffle and a game of Heads and Tails. Lucas Whitehead from ANDYSMANCLUB was also invited to the event to speak about the charity and the impact it has had on men’s mental health. Aspray has supported the charity for the past two years.
Central Co-op sponsors March of the Elephants trail
The March of the Elephants trail is raising money for St Giles Hospice throughout the summer. From the 1 July to 8 September, the streets, parks and open spaces of Lichfield, Tamworth and Sutton Coldfield hold over 60 elephant sculptures, including 30 large pieces crafted by celebrated and emerging artists, and over 40 mini sculptures created by local schools and community groups.
Central Co-op is contributing with two elephant sculptures: a large elephant sculpture, named Trunkful of Memories, positioned outside Central Co-op’s Boley Park store in Lichfield, the sculpture was designed by Sri Lankan-born artist, chef, florist and creative, Gayani Ariyaratne. A small elephant calf sculpture was designed and painted by pupils from the local Streethay Primary School in Lichfield. Each elephant is equipped with a QR code that provides information about the sponsor and offers a little reward for visitors. Central Co-op’s incentive is tied to Our Malawi Partnership products, which are available in all Central Co-op stores.
Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club and UNICEF announce partnership
As part of the three-year partnership with UNICEF, Brighton & Hove Albion will make a donation to help the charity deliver aid and resources. The strategic alliance also marks the start of a long-term initiative to combine Albion’s footballing expertise with UNICEF’s voice on child rights. Together, they will co-create an advisory toolkit to improve and amplify best practices in sports coaching for children.
DF Capital’s Mega Giveback sees 110 employees volunteer over 400 hours for Manchester charities in one day
110 colleagues from DF Capital took to the streets earlier in July, volunteering their time for 10 local charities and organisations as part of the company’s annual ‘Mega Giveback’ initiative. For the second year in a row, the entire bank spent an afternoon helping make a positive impact on the local community. Fourteen teams dispersed to various sites, engaging in both practical and guided activities to support organisations including Groundwork Greater Manchester, Friends of Platt Fields, JustLife, and The Trussell Trust.
In 2023, DF Capital colleagues collectively volunteered 1,800 hours. This year it has increased its paid volunteering leave to four days.
Diageo announces 18-month pilot partnership with UK Men’s Sheds Association
The partnership will allow the charity to further scale its presence, providing more people across the country with an important, positive social outlet to address loneliness.
The collaboration will also see Diageo and the UK Men’s Sheds Association co-develop a programme of activity to encourage alcohol moderation later this year, equipping ‘Shed Leaders’ across this expanding network with the resources to lead informed conversations about the causes and consequences of harmful drinking. These resources will be available in late 2024 through Diageo’s flagship responsible drinking platform DRINKiQ, which aims to promote moderation by providing consumers with the information to help make responsible choices.