Giving back

Driving change

Giving back is a big part of who we are at Simply Business. We believe it’s our responsibility to give back to the world we live and work in – for our communities, our customers, and our environment. Individually and collectively, we understand we’ve got the potential to be a real force for good.

We team up with charity and community organisations to drive change. Here’s a flavour of some of the things we’ve been working on.

Simply Business and Mind

In 2021, Simply Business kicked off a brand new UK partnership with Mind. Our people voted to partner with the leading mental health charity, who work to make sure that everyone experiencing a mental health problem gets support and respect.

We recognise that this is a timely selection. While mental health problems affect all parts of society, we know there are people who are under-represented in terms of the support available. This has worsened during the pandemic, and we’re now facing a mental health emergency.

Mind is a leading campaigner on mental health and we’ve got the opportunity to make an impact on issues that affect so many people, including ourselves, our customers, and our wider communities.

Our partnership efforts will be focused on volunteering, and sharing the incredible skills and honest lived experience of our people, as well as fundraising. Our work will support Mind to continue to deliver their services, which include:

• providing advice and support to empower anyone experiencing a mental health problem, through their Infoline, Legal Line, publications and website
• supporting the increased demand in services due to the coronavirus pandemic – for context, more than half of adults (60%) and two thirds of young people (68%) say their mental health has become worse during lockdown – meaning services such as Mind's Coronavirus Hub are vital

Working with Whizz-Kidz

Between 2016 and 2020 we partnered with Whizz-Kidz in the UK, a charity working hard to transform the lives of young disabled people by providing the equipment, support and life skills they need – giving them a chance to reach their full potential. Between us, we:

• raised over £290k for the charity – through a mix of fundraising, donations, payroll giving, customer refunds and company matching
• funded over 70 pieces of mobility equipment** including 31 lightweight wheelchairs, 12 adapted trikes, 24 powered wheelchairs and four sports wheelchairs
• supported 14 employability skills days run by Whizz-Kidz
• funded 25 places at wheelchair training courses
• covered 20 places at Whizz-Kidz activity clubs
• given over 500 hours of volunteering time
• hosted Whizz-Kidz events including the Kidz Board Showcase, using our accessible office space
• won ‘Best Charity Partnership in the Financial Services sector' at the Business Charity Awards, and our challenge teams trekked through the Lake District, Costa Rica, Kerala, the Sahara, and the Alps to raise money

Beyond fundraising for new mobility equipment, our partnership efforts have meant independence, confidence and empowerment for hundreds of young disabled people.

Supporting England's Amputee Football Association

The England Amputee Football Association is a registered charity that relies on the commitment of amateur players, volunteers and partners — like Simply Business — to promote and develop amputee football in the UK and beyond.

We’re incredibly proud to support their efforts and are delighted to have helped them take part in the Amputee Football World Cup in Mexico in 2018.

Check out our video of the guys in action — representing amputee football at the UEFA Champions Festival in Cardiff.