Ways to support us

Save the Children relies on the generosity, enthusiasm and commitment of companies and their staff to raise vital funds.

There are five ways companies can support our work:

Commercial partnerships

Most consumers agree that, price and quality being equal, they are more likely to buy a product or service that is associated with a cause they care about. Cause-related marketing encourages the formation of a partnership between Save the Children and your company through which we market a product or service for our mutual benefit.

We have the skills and expertise to form a profitable partnership with your company in order to raise vital funds both for vulnerable children worldwide and for your business. By visibly demonstrating your commitment to social responsibility, you can benefit your business, your consumers and our work.

Examples of our commercial partnerships:

  • Organic, Fairtrade chocolate helps feed children in Ethiopia, Niger and Bangladesh
    Consumers can now enjoy chocolate without the guilt, knowing that they are helping children and supporting a Fairtrade initiative. We have developed an exciting partnership with the Fairtrade organic chocolate retailer Chocaid.com. A proportion of the profits from each product sold will support our nutrition work in Ethiopia, Niger and Bangladesh. Customers can decide which of the three countries to support at http://www.chocaid.com/.

  • Soft toys from IKEA help children at Christmas
    Every year IKEA raises money for vulnerable children around the world by selling soft toys during the Christmas period. For every soft toy bought from 18 November to 23 December, £1 is shared between UNICEF and Save the Children. This promotion raised over 2.8 million euros in 2006. The money goes towards projects around the world that help children who are out of school, growing up in poverty or at risk of abuse.

Direct project support

Your company can help us make a real difference to children's lives by directly supporting our work. You can choose to support a specific project relevant to the nature of your business and your marketing priorities. You will receive regular reports and updates on how your support is making a difference to the lives of the world's children.

Tea leaves spell good fortune for Chinese children
Twinings is raising over half a million pounds to support our work in China. Since much of their tea comes from China, the company wanted to find ways to support the country's tea-growing regions. Twinings:

  • supports children with disabilities in Anhui, central China - one of the country's poorest provinces
  • supports the Yunnan Minority Basic Education project in south-west China, helping children from the Yunnan province's 25 minority ethnic groups access an education
  • funds a centre in Ruili, Yunnan, which has cross-border trade with Myanmar (Burma). The centre provides treatment for sexually transmitted diseases and other illnesses and information on HIV and AIDS.

Volunteering

The corporate sector is full of individuals with valuable specialist skills and experience. By giving your time and skills to us, we can make a greater impact on the lives of children around the world. Employee volunteering can strengthen your corporate social responsibility programme and make you stand out from your competitors.

We value your expertise, your specialist skills and the fresh perspective that you could bring to our work. We have extensive experience in developing specialist volunteer roles.

  • PricewaterhouseCoopers volunteers help improve our work in China
    Highly skilled volunteers from PricewaterhouseCoopers helped us assess and improve our income-generation work in Yunnan province, China, from July to August 2006. The Yunnan Minority Basic Education Project provides grants for schools to initiate small income-generation projects such as setting up tea plantations. The income raised is used to help poor children from ethnic minority groups to go to school.

    The PricewaterhouseCoopers volunteers were part of the company's Ulysses programme, which deepens leadership skills and encourages an understanding of global business. The volunteers analysed the strengths and weaknesses of the current projects and helped to develop a more efficient business-management model for income-generation.

Staff fundraising

Staff fundraising is fun, simple and sociable. By supporting your staff to fundraise you will:

  • develop motivated and engaged teams who work together for a common cause
  • improve awareness of problems facing children around the world
  • develop staff members' personal and professional skills.

We have the resources and staff to help you with your activities.