FirstGroup’s charity partnership with Action for Children has won in the automotive and transport category of this year’s prestigious Business Charity Awards managed by Third Sector.
Chosen and actively supported by FirstGroup employees, the partnership with Action for Children supports young people on their journey to better mental health.
After only two years, the partnership has hit an incredible value of £2.1 million in employee fundraising, corporate donations and the commercial value of gifts in kind, making it FirstGroup’s most successful partnership to date in terms of value.
Action for Children benefits from advertising space and travel support across FirstGroup’s bus and rail networks and vital funding for mental health projects, enabling the delivery of essential specialist support to young people who desperately need help.
Over 500 hours of mental health interventions have been delivered to date and more than 230 Action for Children staff have been upskilled with mental health training. This year, thanks to FirstGroup funding, 3,500 primary school children will benefit through the delivery of FRIENDS, an early intervention and prevention programme that builds mental health resilience in children aged 4 to 11.
Kate Broome, FirstGroup Director of Corporate Responsibility, ‘We’re incredibly proud of each and every FirstGroup colleague across the UK and of our partners Action for Children for delivering this truly vital charity partnership. Never has it been more important to help vulnerable young people and their families in our communities, and over the past two years we’ve seen how colleagues at every level in FirstGroup have mobilised behind Action for Children through fundraising, volunteering and pro bono support. And thanks to the incredible work of Action for Children, we can have a life-changing impact in our local communities through truly inspirational projects, transforming the mental health and wellbeing of children and young people across the UK and raising awareness of mental health amongst our employees and customers.’
Action for Children’s deputy CEO and managing director of children’s services, Carol Iddon said:
‘We’re hugely grateful to the FirstGroup for their continued commitment and support. The partnership has enabled our charity to run vital mental health projects up and down the country to help those young people who need it most.
‘Every day, our frontline services see the pain and anguish that children and teenagers experience as they struggle to understand how they fit into the world - from self-harm and eating disorders to depression and anxiety.
‘With so much uncertainty in their lives as the Coronavirus emergency continues, young people are facing complex new challenges at home and school so our partnership is needed now more than ever to ensure they are able to have a safe and happy childhood.’