Get Involved
With your support, we can make an unprecedented change to help one million people thrive.
We want to assure you that in a time of such uncertainty, we are going to continue supporting our four incredible charities – Place2Be, OnSide Youth Zones, Samaritans and The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award - and working hard to implement our initiatives This is Me, She Can Be…, Power of Inclusion, and City Giving Day.
We, together with our partners, continue to be addressing pressing issues and supporting some of London’s most vulnerable people – people who need our help now more than ever.
We thought it was important to let our supporters and partners know what we are doing in the current situation. We are being resourceful, adapting our offering and taking advantage of online opportunities to continue to reach those who need us.
Things are changing rapidly, and we are responding as best we can, but for now, this is what is happening.
Power of Inclusion
London is one of the most diverse cities in the world, yet many people face significant barriers to getting a job or progressing their careers in the City, due to their background. In a bid to create a city that is inclusive and open to everyone, the Power of Inclusion 2020 series will be focusing on social mobility, exploring some of the structural barriers and internal beliefs that can stop people progressing.
Members of Power of Inclusion get access to our breakfast seminars and workshops, which provide practical tips and tools, real life success stories, and an opportunity to collaborate on moving the dial forwards on diversity and inclusion.
We believe social mobility will be even more important in the economic aftermath of Covid-19 and we are therefore working to adapt our usual programme of activities, so they are both relevant and sensitive to our current climate.
We will therefore be moving the first three events in our series online to connect workplaces and employees across London on these important topics.
There’s still time to sign up – get in touch on inclusive@thelordmayorsappeal.org
This is Me
We know that now, more than ever, employees need support with their mental health. The work that This is Me has been doing over the last few years has gone a long way to strengthening resilience and improving wellbeing, and we are committed to delivering our vital work.
We believe it is important to keep talking, and the This is Me storytelling tools are an excellent way of encouraging this conversation. We know that mental health will be impacted by the current climate, and our Wellbeing in the Workplace tool, developed with Samaritans, will be a useful resource for employees at this time. Many of us will be working from home, which brings its own challenges, but we still believe that it is important to connect with colleagues and support them. We encourage you to use the resources available to help yourself, your colleagues, and your employees.
These are unprecedented times, and we, like everyone else, are listening to the advice and adapting our response as things change. The situation we are in can be anxiety provoking and difficult, and we are committed to offering the support that we can.
We urge you to keep talking, and be part of the movement to #endthestigma.
She Can Be…
She Can Be… exists to inspire and inform young women about the opportunities available to them in the future, encouraging them to dream big and aim high. We know that many of the young women who have taken part in She Can Be… will be finding the current situation difficult, as schools are closed and exams cancelled. We will be sharing content on our She Can Be… Instagram page and hope that young women will remain curious and keep in touch to stay empowered.
City Giving Day
City Giving Day is The Lord Mayor’s Appeal’s annual celebration of philanthropy and giving in the City. It’s a great time to reflect on everything that City businesses are doing for local communities and charities. This year it will be more important than ever, as many charities and organisations are finding that their funding is being impacted, and will be reliant on businesses and organisations being able to support them as much as possible.
By its nature, City Giving Day brings people together. It’s one of the things that makes it so brilliant. It is several months away, and we hope that it will be able to go ahead as normal. We will be monitoring the situation closely, and will decide on the best course of action closer to the time.
Our upcoming breakfasts will be run as online sessions – more details will be made available to you soon. Although this will be different to usual, we hope that you will be able to pour yourself a coffee, grab yourself a croissant, and take part in an engaging and inspiring session. We recognise that it might be difficult to organise an event with everyone working remotely for the foreseeable future, but will be providing hints and tips as to how you can get together virtually and plan something brilliant.
Hundreds of businesses take part in City Giving Day to do their bit for charities and communities. Last year we had 424 companies involved, raising an estimated £500,000, and recruiting around 5000 volunteers. We’d love you to be one of them this year. You can register here.
Events
As you know, we have a packed calendar of events throughout the mayoral year, in support of The Lord Mayor’s Appeal and our charity partners.
We appreciate all your help in enabling us to deliver these exciting fundraisers, which are crucial in our mission to create A Better City For All.
Obviously, we are unable to go ahead with some of our upcoming events. We are looking at alternative dates, and hope to be able to inform you soon of any changes. If you cannot make the new date, we will of course be offering refunds, although do ask that consider turning part or all of the ticket price into a donation if you are able to.
If you can still support us, our charities and us would very much appreciate it. For context, our average ticket price is £300. That would give 300 young people a meal at an OnSide Youth Zone; enable the Samaritans to take 60 calls; help Place2Be to support 15 parents with counselling; or allow 13 young people to start a Bronze or Silver Duke of Edinburgh’s Award programme.
The wellbeing and safety of our guests and staff remains paramount, and we will only host events when it is safe to do so.
We hope to be able to bring you good news soon, and see you at fundraising event!