Respect for people and the environment has long been at the heart of our business, so partnering with charities and organisations allows us to play an active role in supporting the people and communities in which we work. To celebrate International Charity Day, we’re taking a look at some of the great work of our charity partners, so far, in 2019 – The British Council, Panathlon, United Purpose and SportInspired.

Empowering disadvantaged communities

We’ve been working with United Purpose and The British Council to empower people, in the markets where we source our products, to reach their potential.

This year, we’ve collaborated on the ‘Fit For The Future’ project, improving the wellbeing and employability skills of young people in Bhiwandi, Mumbai.

United Purpose has introduced a ‘Girls Watch Committee”, which trains young women about their rights relating to education, marriage and equality – the orientation programmes aim to increase employability; supporting around 40 young people to develop their skills to access jobs.

And the British Council, ‘Crafting Futures’ programme, has supported over 100 artisans in Thailand to develop business knowledge and expertise in the design and textiles industry.

Inspiring young people to get active

We want to help more people get fit and stay healthy, so we’ve committed to a three-year partnership with Panathlon, who support over 5,000 disabled swimmers, and SportInspired, who aim to tackle childhood obesity in disadvantaged communities through sport.

This year, we’ve collaborated with Panathlon to host 39 swimming competitions across the UK – with 1,757 children and 379 young leaders participating – a 17% increase on our original target.

Our employees have also been involved, with over 90 Pentland Brands volunteers helping SportInspired to host inclusive sports programmes for local schools in London and Sunderland, giving over 400 primary school children the opportunity to discover a sport they love.

Zoe Cokeliss Barsley, Head of Environmental and Community Affairs at Pentland Brands, says, “It’s extremely rewarding to see the enormous impact our charity partners have had so far this year. Thanks to their efforts, women in our sourcing markets are being empowered to get into work and progress their careers and thousands of young people in the UK have been given the chance to take part in sport”.