We are delighted to be partnering with Macmillan Cancer Support
in 2011 as our first ever official charity partner.
As a supplier of software and services to over 1,000
not-for-profit organisations, we truly understand the pressures
that charities are facing at present. That is why we, as a company
and as individuals, wanted to formalise a charity partnership to
consolidate and maximise our fundraising efforts and try to make a
really significant contribution to a worthy cause. We’re not sure
if this is what The Big Society is all about but we’re pleased to
be helping as worthwhile a cause as Macmillan Cancer Support and we
aim to have a lot of fun in the process!
We selected Macmillan as our charity partner after a vote
amongst our 1,000+ employees. The six most popular charities were
then invited to pitch to our ‘Community Champions’, a group which
is made up of one representative from each of our 20+ offices. We
wanted to choose a charity partner that all of our staff felt
strongly about and whose work is close to many of our hearts. We
also wanted a nationwide charity to match our own footprint across
the UK.
Macmillan Cancer Support improves the lives of people affected
by cancer, providing practical, medical, emotional and financial
support. Working alongside people affected by cancer,
Macmillan works to improve cancer care. One in three people in the
UK will get cancer. Two million people in the UK are currently
living with it. Macmillan’s primary goal is to reach and improve
the lives of every one of these people.
Over the course of 2011 we are aiming to work together to raise
over £25,000 for Macmillan through a wide variety of fundraising
events, from an IRIS Christmas Day in early December, through to
auctions and epic sporting challenges. Our company has also agreed
to match our fundraising efforts pound for pound up to £18,000.
This means that we should hopefully be able to contribute over
£43,000 to Macmillan. On top of this, our staff will also be
volunteering their time to help Macmillan in their support centres
located all around the UK.
You can find out more about Macmillan at
www.macmillan.org.uk.
If you have any questions about cancer, need support or just
someone to talk to, call Macmillan free, Monday to Friday, 9am-8pm
(interpretation service available). 0808 808 0000.
Or if you would like to know more about our fundraising, are
interested in taking part in one of our fundraising activities or
would like to sponsor us or donate money to Macmillan, please
contact Hazel Birdsall at hazel.birdsall@iris.co.uk or
01482 593208 or
make a donation here.