Office workers in London have raised more than £120,000 for two charities.
Employees at KPMG agreed to donate their first hour’s pay of 2013 to the firm’s national charity partners Action for Literacy and Shelter. Over 1,600 staff and partners are believed to have taken part in the initiative.
Indeed, the final figure of £123,770 marks a record amount for the First Hour appeal, with the company matching all of the donations made by staff members. This demonstrates the generosity of some of the users of office space in London, who are determined to help out good causes in the UK.
In November 2012, KPMG announced it was entering into a two-year partnership with the charities and is seeking to raise £1 million in this time period.
Action for Literacy is a new partnership between Dyslexia Action and National Literacy Trust and it was chosen thanks to the overlap with KPMG’s existing educational programmes, while Shelter seeks to tackle the causes of homelessness and address the issues behind why people struggle to find and keep a home.
Marianne Fallon, head of corporate affairs at KPMG, said: “We are delighted with the fantastic and generous response from staff which has raised a record amount for these two great causes.
“We are really looking forward to working closely with both charities over the next two years to raise as much money as we can for the vital work that they do and to provide a sustainable legacy through long-term improvements to their businesses.”
She added KPMG is keen to support both of the initiatives and bring greater awareness of the important issues they are trying to deal with. As well as raising cash, the organisation is also going to provide pro bono work and skilled volunteering to help the charities improve their operations.
