A positive role in the community
We want to play a positive role in the communities where we operate. We believe that the strength of our business and our people is related to the health and wellbeing of those communities. Through our charitable donation, the Virgin Money Foundation will continue to work to make a real and lasting difference in the places that need it most, by working in partnership with organisations that are tackling digital exclusion in local communities and by investing in community activities that close the digital divide.
We’re proud to announce that Mind, the leading mental health charity across England and Wales, and SAMH (Scottish Action for Mental Health) are our new charity partners for FY24. We’ve already begun working with Mind and SAMH to define and implement a programme of volunteering and fundraising events driven by our Purpose and to deliver on our super-themes of digital inclusion and financial education.
Our 3-year partnership with Macmillan came to an end during 2023, and we’re delighted to announce that we’ve raised £346k during FY23, with fundraising over the past 2 years of £656k this takes the total raised throughout the partnership to over £1.5 million, which is the sum of all the fundraising and additional donations.
Highlights from our community activities
Open Doors focuses on how we are ensuring we’re open for business to all, driven by our wider purpose of making customers, colleagues and communities happier about money, encouraging sustainable practices and economic activity that creates shared prosperity.
- The Group’s annual donation to the Virgin Money Foundation has enabled the Foundation to award 350 grants totalling more than £1.6million through its four grant programmes. The grants were awarded to initiatives located in areas in the top 20% of the Index of Multiple Deprivation or Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation, with 76% of funds being spent in areas in the top 5% of either index.
- 2023 was the first year of the relaunched Make £5 Grow entrepreneurship programme with online resources and videos aligned to the financial education framework giving real experiences of running a business. The total number of pupils who have participated since launch is now over 185,000.
- In FY23 we have donated c£418k to two not-for-profit organisations specialising in debt management that we refer customers onto – Step Change and PayPlan – both of whom are recognised as key providers of free-to consumer debt advice, and are authorised and regulated by the FCA.