Groupe Atlantic Supporting Macmillan – Groupe Atlantic UK, ROI and North Americas
Throughout 2018 and continuing in 2019, Groupe Atlantic’s UK (GA UK) brands Hamworthy Heating, Ideal Commercial, Ideal Boilers, Keston, Gledhill and Atlantic Heat all came together to raise funds for their chosen charity – Macmillan Cancer Support.
As a relatively newly formed group of companies, this was the first time they had joined forces to pool their resources and fundraise for one charity. Cancer affects everyone either directly or indirectly which is why the decision was made to back Macmillan Cancer Support.
How did the initiative kick-off?
The fundraising kicked off in a creative way with every member of staff being given a tube of Smarties. Why? Each tube can hold enough £1 coins to fund a Macmillan nurse for an hour. Staff were encouraged to keep the tube visible on their desk as a reminder of how they could ‘power an hour’ by filling it throughout the year.
What happened next?
The fundraising team made up of people from every brand got their thinking caps on and engaged their employees to build a calendar of events. Some activities were held jointly across all sites and some of the brands and employees within took on their own challenges.
Fundraising throughout the year included:
- A GA UK-wide holiday raffle was a popular activity as the executives ‘donated’ their own holiday allowance for other employees to win. The top prize was 3 extra days annual leave entitlement – no one could resist the chance to win this!
- Official events organised by Macmillan such as the World’s Biggest Coffee Morning
- Individual and team challenges ranged from walking, hiking, and climbing mountains (with a cardboard cut-out of a boiler!), cycling, and participating in Survival of the Fittest events.
- Every seasonal event was tied into fundraising with barbecues in summer, a Grand National Sweepstake, Christmas jumpers and a Valentines raffle with suitably fitting prizes.
- Tuck shops at each of the sites have appealed to those with a sweet tooth
- Groupe Atlantic UK, ROI and North America’s group-wide business conference raised money through charity donations and an auction
Altogether, the companies donated £38,594, enough to fund a Macmillan nurse for nine months.
Shaun Edwards, CEO from Groupe Atlantic UK, ROI and North America Divisions, commented:
“We’re pleased to see what combining our fundraising efforts across our Groupe Atlantic UK companies has achieved. It’s not just our brands as a whole but also the individuals within who went out of their way to raise more money. With the £38,594 we’re donating, we can fund a Macmillan cancer nurse for nine months. It’s great to see how our contribution can make a real difference.”
Staff feedback:
“I’m so pleased our company charity is Macmillan as my mum died from cancer 8 years ago and they were so supportive.”
What next?
In 2019/2020, Groupe Atlantic UK, ROI & North Americas will continue to support the charity, working towards a target of funding 150 heating grants.
Macmillan Grants are small payments to help people with the extra costs that cancer can cause. They are usually a one-off payment and for people who have a low level of income and savings.
People undergoing cancer treatment are often at home and feel the cold more due to side effects such as weight and hair loss and reduced energy levels, so tend to turn their heating up. This can result in their energy consumption going up while their income may be significantly reduced, making energy costs a big concern for cancer patients.
Every day more than 46 people receive heating grants from Macmillan so they can keep the heating on when they really need to. £200 could pay for a Macmillan Grant that helps a person living with cancer heat their home when they really need to.
To date this year, they are just £5k away from hitting their target.
Becky Read, Fundraising Manager/Partnership Manager at Macmillan Cancer Support, added:
“Groupe Atlantic’s dedication, passion and drive for the Macmillan partnership has been incredible across the entire business. From coffee mornings to runs, dress down days to Mighty Hikes, they’ve organised something that everyone can get involved in to help make a difference to the lives of people with cancer. Not only have they fundraised a life changing amount of money for us but they have also arranged for our Mobile Information Support to visit their site to provide staff with advice and support should they need it. The partnership so far has raised over £40,000 and that figure keeps climbing. This is enough to fund a Macmillan Nurse for over 1300 hours! It’s an absolute pleasure to work with them and I think they whole-heartedly deserve this award”
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