How we supported our local communities in 2023

Our connection to the local community remained stronger than ever last year, with our Cheltenham office continuing to support worthy causes, many of which are very close to our hearts. CSR has always been a key consideration of all the activities we do and if it involves donating our time for charity or volunteering for local initiatives, we’re all for it and that won’t change in 2024.

Charities we supported last year included The Nelson Trust, Pied Piper Appeal, The National Star College, and the Cheltenham Hospital Oncology Centre – which was a standout moment for us for many reasons. Over 60 members of our staff gave up their time to help improve the gardens and create a valued and much needed space for patients and families suffering with life changing illness.

Other CSR activities included:

• Charity quizzes, with £5,843 being raised at our Christmas quiz
• Charity netball tournament involving 14 teams from different local organisations and businesses and raised £2,754
• Sponsoring and supporting the delivery the Cheltenham Lido Aquathlon raising funds for the Pied Piper Appeal
• Attending and volunteering at charity flagship events
• Hosting trustee meetings in our boardrooms
• Volunteering at the Cheltenham civic day
• Taking part in organised charity events such as the Big Sleep Out, Trek 26 and Movember.

CSR for us goes beyond events and volunteering, we make conscious choices to integrate supporting our causes into our day-to-day activities in the office. For example, many of our internal office events and meetings are catered for by The Sober Parrot, a not-for-profit cafe run by The Nelson Trust. Not only do they provide us with an excellent service and delicious food, but it is a cost-neutral and simple way of supporting the charity.

The sense of community, giving back and team work that comes with our pro-active approach to CSR has been so rewarding for our office and we’ll continue to do that in 2024

If you have any queries about CSR, or would like to discuss similar initiatives for your business with our CSR champion, Rachel Roberts, then please contact us.