Last Updated on: 22nd November 2023, 11:39 am
424 London businesses came together to celebrate their charitable and volunteering efforts for this year’s City Giving Day 2019 – a record number for organisers The Lord Mayor’s Appeal.
The firms, who have supported hundreds of charities over the last year, showcased their philanthropic efforts with thousands of City and Canary Wharf workers, clients, suppliers and supporters wearing red for the day.
City Giving Day is one day a year which is set aside to celebrate the value of the City and Canary Wharf to society.
It champions the activities – whether it is corporate social responsibility, philanthropy, or volunteering initiatives – that companies do to support charity, society, their local communities, and the environment in which they work.
The annual event is a chance for employers to talk to staff, recognise achievements and plan even better community engagement in the future, whether in the form of mentoring, fundraising or volunteering vital expertise.
Alderman Peter Estlin, the Lord Mayor of the City of London, as well as the Lady Mayoress, Sheriffs and Aldermen visited more than 50 companies across the Square Mile who took part in the celebration through a variety of awareness and fundraising events.
He said: “City firms are doing some really valuable work, benefitting society through business volunteering, fundraising events and philanthropic work. City Giving Day 2019 was a great chance to spread the word about this amazing work, as so many businesses look to extend their philanthropic work and corporate social responsibility.
“I really enjoyed seeing everyone come to gather to celebrate the impact that they are having on people in the Square Mile and beyond.”
Activities throughout the day included a quiz, treasure hunt, and a fundraising static bike competition. The Lord Mayor took part in Tour de Canary Wharf and Tour de City, pedalling for charity. Organisations took part by hosting bake sales, a rickshaw challenge, coffee mornings, visiting local charities, and more. All across London, from the West End to Canary Wharf, employees wore red to show their support.
Chris Turpin, Managing Director of First State Investments says “We find City Giving Day an incredibly important point in the calendar for coming together and supporting valuable causes. This is the fourth year we have taken part and we use the day as a chance to highlight the charitable partnerships and opportunities for matched giving that exist at First State, as well as to support the Lord Mayor’s Appeal through a variety of fundraising activities.”
Arthur Financials organised a bake off, had a sponsored haircutting session, and supported young people with employability skills. They said: “Arthur is proud to partner with The Brokerage and pledge our time to this fantastic cause! Today we had a great session with The Brokerage as part of our Lord Mayors City Giving Day, pledging our commitment to help youngsters from inner city London gain employment skills. We will be running CV workshops, mock interviews and advising on training materials in addition to raising the profile of risk and insurance to young talent.”
Brand Finance enthusiastically braved the rain for the guided tour. “Bounding their way through puddles and across bridges, we were up against the clock armed with selfie sticks to find the most famous landmarks and frame the team within the infamous red Lord Mayor Instagram frame. It was refreshing for all to be out of the office and sprinting through the city, especially since it was for a good cause,” says Sehr Sarwar, Communications Director.
“City Giving Day is a great mobilising day to recognise the contribution the City makes within our communities. This City Giving Day, Standard Chartered celebrated the launch of our Futuremakers programme, Goal, which aims to unleash the economic potential of girls in underserved communities.” Said Jonathan Bewes, Vice Chairman, Corporate & Institutional Banking at Standard Chartered Bank.
MacFarlanes LLP saw 13 teams go head to head in their annual static triathlon today, raising over £4000 for our Charity of the Year, The Royal Marsden. This brings the total for their partnership to over £125,000. Addleshaw Goddard were fortunate enough to welcome the Lord Mayor to their office for Afternoon Tea where they were able to showcase the fantastic CSR work taking place across the firm. Over 70 employees at KMPG put in incredible effort as they collectively rowed 1,000km to raise money for NSPCC.
The Lord Mayor’s Appeal’s three chosen charities, which will be supported through City Giving Day, are Place2Be, OnSide Youth Zones and Samaritans.
Place2Be will use the funds to provide children in 180 schools across London with access to mental health and emotional support, tackling the 75% of mental health issues that start in childhood.
OnSide Youth Zones is creating five state-of-the-art centres in areas of deprivation, providing access to a safe space and programme of activities ranging from sport and music to mentoring, transforming lives in communities for those that need it most. They have already opened centres in Barking & Dagenham and Barnet.
Samaritans’ new initiative Wellbeing in the City will use the funds raised for its ground-breaking online platform, giving employees the skills they need to manage wellbeing in the workplace.
