International Charity Day: Shining a light on causes we support
4th Sep 2022
The 5th September is International Charity Day, so we thought we’d shine a light on some of the amazing causes we support and the incredible, life changing work they do.
We like to try and think globally but act locally, taking an active role in local community programmes and charity initiatives as well as being aware of our responsibility to be a good corporate citizen in the wider world too.
Supporting the local community
Close to home, we recognise that not everyone is fortunate enough to have a roof over their heads. That’s why we’re proud to support Trinity Winchester who help people affected by homelessness in Winchester. We were honoured to be the sponsors of their annual Big Sleep Out event, providing practical support to help make the event a successful fundraiser. We even had a team of Draper colleagues spend the night under stars raising their own funds for the charity too.
The power of sport
Another cause that’s close to our hearts and our head office is SANDS United FC. This unique football team helps bereaved dads and other family members cope with the impact of stillbirth and neonatal death through a shared love of sport. We’ve been proud sponsors of the team for the past few years and are pleased to be continuing our support for them into the next year.
On the sporting theme, we’re also very proud of our recent partnership with Saints Foundation, the official charity of Southampton Football Club. 40 years after the iconic original partnership between Draper and Southampton Football Club, our relationship with Saints entered a new chapter when named Saints Foundation as our Community Charity Partner. Saints Foundation works with the most vulnerable people in Southampton, with projects supporting participants to become healthier, empowered members of their communities. We’ll be supporting the foundation through fundraising and volunteering over the course of the next year and beyond.
It's true that we love to see people enjoying the benefits for mental and physical health that flow from involvement in community sports – whether that’s as players, volunteers or supporters. So as a proud Hampshire-based family business, we’re pleased to show support for local team Havant and Waterlooville FC through community partnership initiatives.
Supporting young people
Recently, we have also been pleased to be involved with Youth Options, a very special charity, based just minutes from our head office. Youth Options is committed to developing young people’s social and emotional skills to improve their chances in life. The charity's services are individually tailored to deliver vibrant, dynamic and ever-evolving opportunities that connect with and inspire young people. It’s an ongoing partnership which has so far seen us donating several hand and power tools help maintain the charity’s outdoor learning centre, as well as a number of gardening essentials and tools from the Young Gardener range for students on horticultural learning programmes.
Global and local
Combining the local with the global, we are also enthusiastic supporters of Tools for Self Reliance, sharing their vision for a people-centred approach to development assistance. Based just down the road from our HQ, this amazing charity refurbishes used tools before distributing them to communities in Ghana, Malawi, Tanzania, Uganda, Sierra Leone and Zambia where they can once again be put to work and make a real difference to people’s lives. It’s such a rewarding partnership – both for the practical help it delivers to communities in need, and for the contribution it makes to reducing the waste generated by old tools just being thrown away when they could be refurbished and recycled with relative ease. Last year our tool advent calendar raised over £7,000 for the charity.
Looking to the future
This year we will be making a donation from the sales of our 2022 Advent Calendar to Cash for Kids, which supports children and families in need across the UK. The charity’s mission is to improve the lives of disadvantaged children and young people affected by poverty, illness or neglect or who have additional needs.
We’re proud of all this work, but by no means complacent. In fact, in every aspect of sustainability and ethics, we recognise there is much more work for us to do. But far from being daunted, it’s an obligation we approach with enormous commitment, enthusiasm and optimism for the future.
Find out more about our charity work and sustainability initiatives here.
