Tag: charity

Make 2nds Count charity raises £1million for forgotten cancer

Secondary breast cancer charity Make 2nds Count has a million reasons to mark the occasion after reaching a phenomenal fundraising milestone. 

Hitting the £1 million mark is bringing hope to those living with the forgotten form of cancer through financing vital research at universities across the UK and providing much-needed support for patients and families. 

The disease – also known as metastatic, advanced or stage IV breast cancer – is an incurable cancer that has spread beyond the breast to other parts of the body.  It can be treated but, on average, there are around 35,000 patients in the UK living with secondary breast cancer and the death toll here is a shocking 1000 women a month. 

Make 2nds Count founder Lisa Fleming, 38, of Edinburgh, set up the charity in 2018 and says: “Reaching our £1million fundraising milestone is just the most exciting start to what we predict will be another productive year for us. 

“And while we look forward to achieving so much more, I’d like to say a huge thank you to everyone who has helped us reach that phenomenal million-pound total. Our supporters really do provide a lifeline and without them we would be unable to make the progress we have accomplished in raising awareness of this disease, in funding dedicated research and in facilitating projects like access to patient trials. Every contribution and donation are enormously appreciated.” 

The £1million milestone was reached thanks to activities including an Inaugural Gala Ball at Edinburgh’s Prestonfield House Hotel and £500,000 from individual fundraisers who took part in events from abseiling off the Forth Rail Bridge to skydiving, trekking the Arctic, running 12 marathons in 12 days and walking 500 miles. 

The UK-wide charity focuses on patients and families of women and men living with secondary breast cancer and among its biggest achievements has been donating £270,000 in research funds to the Universities of Edinburgh, Warwick, Liverpool and Sussex.  

It also launched the Patient Trial Advocate Service, in partnership with NHS Lothian, last year which has already helped 65 patients gain vital information about clinical trials. 

Other initiatives supported by the fundraising include: the first 2nds Together Wellbeing Retreats giving patients a much-needed relaxing break from treatments; a virtual Wellbeing Week with sessions led by industry experts; and littlelifts boxes, packed full of mood-boosting goodies and practical products to support women undergoing breast cancer treatment. 

One of those to benefit is Make 2nds Count patient champion Tricia. She says: “I don’t know how I would have coped without Make 2nds Count and the support services I have been able to access.

“There is nothing like it where I live in the Scottish Highlands. The Tea and A Chat has been a lifesaver for me – being able to talk to others who ‘get it’ is so important.  

“And the Wellbeing Week gave me a much-needed boost, so much fun and very informative. It’s difficult put into words what the retreat meant to me. To meet in person others I’ve only met on zoom was incredible. The love and support I felt from the group were inspiring.” 

Lisa set up Make 2nds Count after being diagnosed with secondary breast cancer. She had had no primary diagnosis, warning signs or lump when she was told the disease had already spread to the majority of her bones. It swiftly spread to her brain and she continues to live with the disease – knowing it is also a death sentence. 

Donations to help the charity provide more support, education and research funds come from a variety of sources including individual and corporate fundraising, legacies, the Make 2nds Count Lottery and the annual Make Christmas Count campaign.

To find out how to contribute go to  https://www.make2ndscount.co.uk/get-involved/ and https://www.make2ndscount.co.uk/donate .  

Mary’s Meals: Mum’s the word for Christmas dinner in Scotland

  • School feeding charity Mary’s Meals asked 2,000 people across the UK who they would most like to cook Christmas dinner for them.
  • Almost half chose a family member over a celebrity chef, with the majority choosing their mum.
  • In the Scotland dads got the thumbs down in the festive kitchen!
  • Mary’s Meals is asking people to help feed hungry children by joining its virtual Christmas dinner.

A new survey by Mary’s Meals has revealed that people would rather have their Christmas dinner cooked by their mum than a celebrity chef.

The global school feeding charity asked 2,000 people who they would prefer to serve up their festive feast. It found that:

  • Almost half (46%) of respondents chose a family member rather than a famous chef – such as Jamie Oliver, Delia Smith, Gordon Ramsay and Nigella Lawson.
  • One in three people (36%) said they would prefer their mum to cook their Christmas dinner over other family members.
  • Just 1% of respondents in Scotland said they would like their dad to prepare the Christmas dinner!

Scotland’s National Chef Gary Maclean responds: “Despite being a professional chef myself, I’m not surprised most people chose their mum to make their Christmas dinner. Us chefs are all well and good but nothing beats a home-cooked festive feast.”

“I love the idea of Mary’s Meals Big Family Christmas – and I’m going to set a place for my late father-in-law Davie, who would love that their virtual seat at the table will feed a hungry child in school for an entire year.”

Mary’s Meals serves more than two million children with a nutritious meal every school day in 19 of the world’s poorest countries, including Malawi, South Sudan and Haiti. The promise of a good meal attracts children to the classroom, giving them the energy and opportunity to learn, and the chance of a brighter future.

Each December the charity holds a virtual Christmas dinner, Big Family Christmas, to raise funds to feed even more hungry children. Last year, nearly 9,000 people around the world took part in the fundraiser.

Emma Hutton, head of grassroots engagement at Mary’s Meals, says: “Tis the season to be jolly, and it seems nothing makes us jollier than a home-cooked Christmas meal. At Mary’s Meals, we want to spread that joy to as many of the world’s most impoverished children as possible.

“Setting a place at our virtual table is a great way to give a truly life-changing gift, especially as each place set this Christmas will feed two children for an entire year thanks to our Double The Love campaign. I look forward to seeing as many names at the table as possible as we celebrate our Big Family Christmas!”

In return for a donation of just £15.90, enough to feed a child with Mary’s Meals for a whole school year, people can take part in the Big Family Christmas. Donors will receive a certificate to print at home and their name, or the name of a loved one, will appear on the charity’s virtual dinner table alongside names from across the world.

Donations made to Mary’s Meals before 31 January 2022 will be matched by a group of generous supporters, up to £1.6 million, thanks to the Double The Love campaign, meaning that each place set at the online Christmas table will feed two hungry children.

To find out more, please visit marysmeals.org.uk/Christmas

Reaching children in Malawi

Mary’s Meals typically serves a mug of porridge to more than one million children in Malawi every school day.

This includes children like 14-year-old Yasimini, who is one of five girls. Her two older sisters were married young, but Yasimini was able to continue with her studies because of Mary’s Meals.

She says: “I work very hard in class so I can fulfill my dream of becoming a nurse. I don’t want to end up getting married early like my sisters.

“Mary’s Meals is very important because when I am attending classes I am strong and attentive and I can pay attention to what the teacher is teaching. This will help me to do well in my studies.”

Horseback UK still suffering effects of Storm Arwen

Charity desperately needs help

At the end of November, registered charity HorseBack UK was hit hard by Storm Arwen. Dozens of trees came down around the county pulling powerlines with them, leaving the charity without power, light, heat, hot water, or phone connection for six days.

Founders Emma and Jock Hutchison were cast back into the pre-electric age, in a freezing house, with a herd of thirty-three horses to look after.

Fortunately, the Hutchisons are pretty tough. One was a Royal Marine and the other served in the police force. They tend not to complain. But even Emma, usually one of the most stoical people you could meet, said that her sense of humour was wearing pretty thin.

Storm Arwen could not have come at a worse time. After 18months of pandemic and not being able to deliver the work the charity is known for, it was just getting back on its feet.

Emma, Jock and the team had re-started delivering their life changing courses to veterans and vulnerable young people, especially those suffering with mental health challenges – many of whom had had a particularly tough lockdown.

A huge amount of work had been done on logistics and installing strict safety protocols and, of course, course sizes had been reduced, limiting the number of people the team could work with and help.

However, there was light at the end of the tunnel and the entire team, including the 33 horses were back to doing what they love. Until Storm Arwen roared in and stopped the charity in its tracks once again.

Not only did it pull down power lines it also damaged buildings and in particular field shelters for the horses. With winter here it is imperative the horses have shelter from the cold, wet winds of northern Scotland.

Co-founder Emma Hutchison explained: “After a tough 18 months we were thoroughly enjoying getting back to work, so to be thwarted again really tested our resilience.  The storm has done a lot of damage and we desperately need to repair or replace the field shelters for the horses.

“The herd is pretty tough and can cope with quite a lot but the relentless rain and wind we get can wear them down and have a negative impact on their health. And when it snows, they really do need a place to shelter.

“These horses are part of our family and we are pulling out all the stops to get them the shelter they need as fast as possible. We desperately need donations to help pay for the materials to build and repair the shelters.”

The arrival of Arwen has also shown Emma that storms can take many forms, and that contingencies need to be put in place. 

Emma added: “We realised we need to build a Storm Fund, to keep us going when the unexpected strikes. We get no government or council funding, so we are completely reliant on donations. It is the generosity of the public which enables us to do our work.

“If we could gather a new fund, it would help us to do additional practical things, like build new field shelters for the horses to protect them against wind and weather, and invest in a generator to keep the lights on. But it would also act as a bulwark against unheralded events, like pandemics or shifts in the economy.

“We want to make sure that Horseback UK can rely on the sturdiest foundations. Whatever the literal or metaphorical weather, we need to be able to go on helping veterans with life-changing injuries, as well as the young people we work with in the local community. We want to ensure that our future is stable, however unstable the external world can sometimes seem. And that is our next, dedicated mission.”

To find out more about Horseback UK and to donate to support their work and the rebuilding of the field shelters visit: 

www.horseback.org.uk 

and https://www.justgiving.com/horseback

Sister Act: Sophie and Emma Double The Love

Sisters Sophie and Emma Thompson are backing a new campaign, Double The Love, which will help Mary’s Meals to feed even more hungry children living in some of the world’s poorest countries. 

Donations made to the charity this winter will be doubled by a group of generous supporters – with up to £1.6 million available to provide nutritious meals at school, attracting children into the classroom and giving them the energy to learn. 

Long-time Mary’s Meals supporter, actor Sophie Thompson, celebrated the launch of the campaign with her sister and fellow actor, Emma Thompson. 

Sophie says: “Emma and I were marvelling about how Mary’s Meals provides food at school for children living in the most desperate circumstances, encouraging them to gain an education that will, in the future, help them out of poverty.  

“We are delighted to announce that donations made to this awesome charity this winter will be doubled – meaning even more little ones will receive a daily serving of Mary’s Meals.” 

Mary’s Meals was founded in a shed in Argyll in 2002 and has grown from feeding 200 children in Malawi to more than two million children every school day in 19 countries around the world. 

Emma adds: “Our mother is Scottish, and Argyll is a very special place for our family. I am overjoyed that a charity founded there is changing the lives of children in some of the world’s poorest countries. It truly is an incredible achievement. 

“Double The Love presents a wonderful opportunity for us all to get behind Mary’s Meals and show children living in the world’s poorest countries that we care.” 

Daniel Adams, executive director of Mary’s Meals, says: “I am so grateful to Sophie and Emma for backing our Double The Love campaign. What a brilliant sister act they are! 

“I hope people will donate to Mary’s Meals this winter so that we can access all of the £1.6 million of match funding that is available to us. These funds really will change the lives of children facing the most difficult circumstances, including natural disasters, conflict, and the ongoing Covid pandemic.” 

The Double The Love campaign runs until 31 January 2022.

Please visit marysmeals.org.uk/doublethelove to find out more.  

Sibongile and Sarah – sisters living in Zambia 

Sibongile, 13, and Sarah,10, live in a farming village in Zambia, almost 8,000 miles away from Sophie and Emma’s homes in London. 

These sisters look very alike – but Sibongile is outgoing and laughs a lot, and her younger sister is very quietly spoken.  

They face many struggles, such as a two-hour walk to school. Sibongile only has black pumps that are too big for her and Sarah wears rubber sandals. In November the area usually floods, making the journey even more difficult.  

But both walk to school knowing that they can soon fill their stomachs with a nutritious serving of Mary’s Meals, which will help them to concentrate on their lessons.  

Sibongile says: “I eat my porridge at 11am. If there’s no leftover food from the night before that will be the first time I eat.”  

New stress reduction initiative has paw-sitive impact on staff!

AN EDINBURGH-based financial services recruitment firm has enlisted some four-legged volunteers to help reduce stress and increase activity amongst its staff while raising money for charity.

The 22 strong team at Core-Asset Consulting will be walking 100km for MacMillan Cancer Support throughout the month of November with the help of the team’s various office dogs.

Kicking off during International Stress Awareness Week at the beginning of November, the fundraising initiative will run throughout the month, encouraging staff to take short walking breaks from their desk with one of the eight canines who regularly frequent the office.  

Coinciding with the recent introduction of a Friday morning canine running club, the walking challenge is hoped to boost morale, decrease stress and encourage healthy habits amongst staff.


Rachael O’Neill, Associate Director of Investment Operations and owner of one of the dogs taking part, Luca, said: “Stress can have a massive impact on mental wellbeing and one of the best ways to combat it is through exercise.

“We already have a regular running club on a Friday morning – wanted to encourage everyone to move more and take regular breaks from their desks throughout the week.

“Staff can take part as little or as often as they like and can walk for as long as they like too. Each distance will be added to an overall tally so it will be a real team effort.

“Our office is dog friendly and a lot of staff take advantage of this. We have Loki, Atlas, Pluto, Shadow, Ruby, Maggie and Cookie as well as my dog Luca. While they’re not all in at once, on any given day you’ll find at least one or more wandering about the office!

“Luca is in every day and Pluto is in most regularly. They both take part in our Friday running club and are loving the attention and the extra walks.

“Luca is very much a lockdown pup so the extra socialising has been great for her. It’s such a weight off not having the pressure of leaving her at home or finding a dog sitter too.”

In addition to the walking challenge, Rachael has been providing staff with stress balls, dedicated stress awareness podcasts and Ted Talks to help her colleagues manage their stress effectively.  

Core-Asset Consulting is Scotland’s pre-eminent recruitment and headhunting agency dedicated to financial and professional services.

Formed in 2005, it was born out of Betsy’s desire to take the best of her experience of large corporate recruiters, applying the focus on infrastructure and training to a more sector-specialised business.

Based in Edinburgh, the £14m firm employs 22 people and works across the entire financial services sector, from the smallest boutiques to the biggest global players.

Initially the firm carved its reputation in Scotland’s globally-renowned asset management sector. However, the success of its model allowed it to expand across the wider financial services market. It now boasts dedicated accounting, investment operations and finance teams and also works in Scotland’s thriving legal sector.

 To find out more about Core Asset visit: https://core-asset.co.uk/

Scottish charity redevelops paediatric Operating Rooms in Zambia

Thousands of children in Zambia now have better access to safe surgery with the opening of six new paediatric Operating Rooms courtesy of global health charity Kids Operating Room (KidsOR).

KidsOR, a Scottish global charity with bases in Edinburgh, Dundee and Nairobi, works to ensure that all children around the world have access to safe surgery. The charity also funds training of paediatric surgeons and anaesthesia providers, and estimates that more than 43,000 children have accessed life-changing or life-saving care via one of the 35 Operating Rooms they have installed since 2018.

The six new Operating Rooms in Zambia are located at University Teaching Hospital (UTH), in Lusaka, and in Arthur Davison Children’s Hospital (ADCH), in Ndola, with each hospital hosting three separate Operating Rooms.

The Scottish Government provided £45,000 of funding to assist with the refurbishment, re-equipping and retraining of staff at the paediatric surgical facilities at UTH.

David Cunningham, CEO of KidsOR, said: “I am proud that KidsOR has installed and equipped six Operating Rooms across the two hospitals. This is our largest project in a single country at the one time, and will ensure that surgeons have the right equipment to save thousands of children’s lives for years to come.

“With around 45 per cent of Zambia’s population being children, this is a country that will particularly benefit from these facilities.”

KidsOR collated data on surgical cases in the past 24 months at UTH so that it could track the difference made once the Operating Room was installed.

The charity identified that in the past two years, almost one in five of the operations that went ahead did so without the necessary surgical equipment and 40 per cent went ahead missing the necessary anaesthetic equipment.

These issues will be rectified as soon as surgeons start using the newly installed Operating Rooms to treat children.

Mr Cunningham added: “This latest project forms an important part of the KidsOR ‘Africa to 2030’ plan which will see us create 120 centres of excellence across Sub-Sahara Africa, each with world-class, state-of-the-art dedicated Operating Rooms for children.

“We aim to ensure that every child can access safe surgery when they need it.”

Dr Bruce Bvulani, Consultant Paediatric Surgeon at University Teaching Hospital, said: “The renovations and re-equipping of the theatre suite is not only timely but also momentous.

“These new Operating Rooms will put a smile not only on the faces of the children but the surgeons as they use their new wares in a refurbished centre. On behalf of the children of Zambia, we are truly grateful to KidsOR, and we promise to make full use of the equipment for the betterment of the children.”

Senior Medical Superintendent and Consultant Paediatrician at Arthur Davison Children’s Hospital, Dr Mwansa J Kaunda, also extended his gratitude. He added: “There will be an increased capacity and ability to care for more paediatric patients considering the hospital serves the northern part of the country. This means expanded services and more treatment options at the hospital, hence improved quality of health for children.

“What’s more, the new equipment and set up of theatre will improve efficiency in procedures, reduce the risk of post-operative wound infections. I am so excited as I never imagined that our Operating Room could look so nice. The last time it got a touch up was in 1978 and we have recently had to carry out operations using a phone torch light rather than proper operating lamp.”

International Development Minister Jenny Gilruth said: “The Scottish Government’s investment in this project will help benefit thousands of children who require life-changing and life-saving care.

“As well as contributing to the new paediatric Operating Rooms, our support will also enhance the skills and knowledge of the surgical teams that carry out these vital procedures. We are proud to work with KidsOR on a project that will change the lives of children and their families and strengthen the capacity and resilience of the health care system in Zambia.”

Africa has the greatest unmet surgical need in the world. Half of Africa’s population (1.3 billion) are children. It is also estimated that 85 per cent of children in Africa will require some kind of surgical care by the age of 15. 

Two of the six Operating Rooms in Zambia have been achieved courtesy of KidsOR’s partnership with cleft-focused organisation Smile Train.

Hearts back charity call to UK Goverment for £50 million

Heart of Midlothian FC is showing its support for 21/22 front of shirt partner, MND Scotland, by joining a call to the UK Government to invest £50 million into motor neurone disease (MND) research.

The Club proudly launched its new home kit for the 2021/22 season in July, with charity MND Scotland taking pride of place on the front of the jersey, thanks to an innovative two-year sponsorship deal with Dell Technologies.

Over the past year, the Club and its supporters have undertaken several fundraising activities as a tribute to former captain, Marius Zaliukas, who tragically lost his fight to MND in 2020.

Now, the Heart of Midlothian players are standing with MND Scotland, to urge the UK Government to invest£50 million over five years into targeted MND research.

The United to End MND campaign is being led by a coalition which includes MND Scotland, the My Name’5 Doddie Foundation, the MND Association, people living with MND, and neurologists from across the UK.

Currently the UK Government’s funding for targeted MND research stands at less than £5 million a year, which the coalition says is not enough. £50 million from the UK Government over five years would fund a virtual institute for MND Research, providing the infrastructure needed for accelerating treatments for MND.

Just last month the coalition delivered a personal letter from people living with MND to 10 Downing Street, which stated ‘MND is a death sentence’ but that ‘research has now reached a point where a cure or life-saving treatments can be found’.

It continued ‘The current piecemeal and protracted approach of funding individual projects will not deliver the life-saving treatments we need…we urgently appeal for action and investment now’.

Andrew McKinlay Heart of Midlothian Chief Executive, said: “We know all too well at Heart of Midlothian the devastating impact MND has, having lost one of our own, Marius Zaliukas.

“If there was a cure, or effective treatments, Marius could still be with us. That’s why we are here today to support this call to the UK Government, for more targeted investment into MND research. 

“The work MND Scotland does to support families living with this frightening disease is hugely important, as is their drive to find a cure for future generations. We are united with them to help end MND.”

Rachel Maitland, MND Scotland’s Chief Executive, said : “The support United to End MND has received from people in the community, politicians, clinicians, researchers and partners has been incredible to date, and we thank Heart of Midlothian for joining with us too.

“Too many lives like Marius’ have already been lost to MND, and people living with the disease today do not have time to wait for a cure. MND isn’t incurable, it’s just under-funded. Together, we will beat MND, but we cannot do it without the UK Government’s support.”

A bid for investment has been submitted to the UK Government’s Spending Review, and the call has already been debated in the UK Parliament after a petition to garner public support gathered more than 100,000 signatures in just three weeks.

Members of the coalition have also met with key politicians to explain the desperate need for the cash, to shore up the investment made by charities and industry.

To find out more about the campaign visit www.mndscotland.org.uk/united or tweet your support @MNDScotland @MNDAssoc and @MNDoddie5 using #United2EndMND.

Charity’s child surgery work creates £1bn of economic benefit

A Scottish-based charity that provides dedicated, specialist facilities and equipment for children’s surgery in low-income countries is today celebrating a significant landmark.

Since its inception in 2018, the work of Kids Operating Room (KidsOR) has given more than 43,000 children access to life-changing or life-saving surgery. Today, KidsOR has announced that the economic benefit of these operations has broken the £1 BILLION mark!

Through independent research, the charity has calculated that a child undergoing an operation in one of its Operating Rooms in Africa or Latin America is projected to go on to contribute an average of £26,000 in additional GDP in the years to come.

David Cunningham, CEO of KidsOR, said: “When a child has a lifesaving operation, or an operation that cures a simple condition like incontinence, that allows the child to stay in school and grow up to contribute to their nation’s economy, we can calculate what the economic benefit to that country was of the child surviving or being able to go to school.

“A core part of our mission is to produce the evidence desperately needed to show that providing surgical care is one of the most impactful investments you can make in global health.

“At KidsOR, we rely on academic partners to conduct independent research to evaluate the impact of our work. For every operation performed in one of our partner hospitals, a local data collector records key data about the operation and its outcomes, as well as its impact on the child and their family.

David Cunningham added: “With all of that in mind, we are delighted to have reached the incredible landmark of £1 billion in economic benefit generated for our partner nations. But our work will not stop here, and we are already working to create many more Operating Rooms and to train many more local surgeons in countries where they are needed the most.”

KidsOR is a Scottish global health charity with bases in Edinburgh, Dundee and Nairobi. It works directly with local surgeons and their teams across Africa and South America to transform hospital spaces into dedicated Operating Rooms for children’s surgery, creating child-friendly surroundings and providing surgeons with the specialist equipment and training they need to care for their nation’s children.

Since 2018, the charity has created the capacity for more than 41,000 operations to be carried out.

A single operation taking place in a KidsOR Operating Room is estimated to prevent an average of 17.1 years of life lost due to disability or premature death. This is the key metric used by the World Health Organisation to assess the global burden of disease.

FT poll shows 90% learnt ‘little or nothing’ about finance at school

‘two in three of the global population, including one in three in the UK, are financially illiterate‘

The Financial Times has launched a new charity endorsed by the former prime minister Gordon Brown, focused on the promotion of financial literacy and inclusion around the world.

The FT Financial Literacy and Inclusion Campaign (FT FLIC) unveiled its strategic plan to boost the financial literacy of young people, women and disadvantaged communities at an event hosted by Roula Khalaf, editor of the Financial Times.

The plan will develop educational programmes to tackle financial literacy, initially in the UK and then around the world. It will seek to warn people about potential financial traps as well as empowering them to realise their aspirations. It will also campaign for policy change and clearer product communication by financial companies. 

“Improving financial literacy for people that need it most, will empower and build financial resilience amongst communities that have faced growing inequalities exacerbated by the pandemic and austerity,” said Aimée Allam, executive director of FT FLIC.

“We have now outlined our ambitious goals to improve financial literacy, and our success will be determined by our ability to achieve these goals in an effective and measurable way.”

A survey, commissioned for the Financial Times by Ipsos Mori, reveals shortcomings in financial understanding among four constituencies that have clear gaps relative to the national average: deprived areas, the young, women and ethnic minorities.

According to the research, 90% of the 3,194 people polled across England learnt “nothing at all” or “not very much” about finance at school. The research also found that barely half of 3,000 respondents were able to correctly compare the costs of borrowing via credit cards or bank overdrafts, regardless of their wealth, ethnicity or gender.

Not only will FT FLIC provide financial educational content for individuals and teachers, it also intends to lobby for education policy to change, in particular pushing for financial literacy to be integrated into school curriculums. FT FLIC will also focus on helping close the financial literacy gap for women and communities marginalised from accessing mainstream finance.

FT FLIC will partner existing charities and other organisations in financial education, and become a hub for the aggregation of the best materials, as well as developing its own content.

Patrick Jenkins, the FT’s deputy editor who chairs FT FLIC, said: “According to the World Bank, two in three of the global population, including one in three in the UK, are financially illiterate.

“If that were true of language literacy it would rightly be regarded as a scandal. Happily getting on for nine in 10 people around the world are now able to read and write. But why is it not regarded as a scandal that financial literacy levels are so low?”

Speaking at the launch of FT FLIC Gordon Brown, former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, said: “In surgeries, I came face-to-face with constituents who could not manage their finances or pay their bills, who racked up debts and fell into the hands of money lenders.

“I saw not only the despair that this brings and the impact it has on physical and mental health but the need for far greater financial literacy. Financial worries have been exacerbated by the pandemic and will certainly worsen when six million families in the UK find their universal credit is cut by £20 a week.

“I welcome this initiative to create an umbrella foundation that will not only work with current providers at the grass roots level, but it will also seek changes to policy.”

The launch of FT FLIC follows 15 years of successful FT seasonal appeals that raised more than £19.5m on behalf of charities and supported many worthy causes.

It’s the Capital’s charity derby!

Hibernian Community Foundation and Big Hearts Community Trust are set to meet for a fundraising football game on Sunday 10th October, to mark World Mental Health Day.

It’s the first time that both charitable arms of the Edinburgh football clubs, Hibernian FC and Heart of Midlothian FC, will come together on the same pitch to raise awareness around wellbeing and mental health. The game is kindly supported by charity partner Utilita Energy. 

Kick-off is 4pm at Ainslie Park. Tickets are now on sale. All proceeds will go to fund our community projects across Edinburgh.

A single-entry ticket is priced at £5 or £2 for concessions and discounted family ticket at £10.

CLICK HERE TO BUY TICKETS

Tickets are available via Fanbase > Utilia Energy > Store > Events > Utilita Charity Challenge Cup > Buy Tickets.

Every year, the 10th of October is a reminder that 1 in 3 people will experience mental health issues at some point in their life. We are delighted to be joining efforts with the Hibernian FC charity on this special occasion, using the reach of football to share information on support services available across the city.

Keep your eyes peeled for further event details, including opportunities for supporters to get involved and support their team on the day!