Reflecting on a year of charity at Colmore BID

Reflecting on a year of charity at Colmore BID

There are many national and local charities who have an office within the Colmore Business District or the neighbouring area’s within Birmingham. These include Children’s Liver Disease Foundation, Ronald McDonald House, LionHeart, SIFA Fireside, RSVP (Rape and Sexual Violence Project), St Basils, Birmingham Museums, Suited for Success, Birmingham Children’s Hospital, The Birmingham and Midlands Institute, Sport Birmingham, WAITS (Women Acting in Today’s Society) and Birmingham Hospice. 

We understand the importance of having a positive social impact on the communities where we live, work, and serve. Last year, we hosted several fundraising activities throughout the year to raise much-needed funds for charitable causes, and this year our team continues with that same passion.

Our Charity Partners

During 2023, we partnered with several charities based in the city including the Ladywood Community Project, Birmingham Children’s Hospital, First Class Foundation, Suited for Success, and Children’s Liver Disease Foundation; these incredible organisations carry out meaningful, essential work in our communities and beyond. 

Here is some further information about how we worked with the charities during 2023:

Ladywood Community Project: In December, we organised Breakfast with Santa for 12 children, who all met Father Christmas, received gifts from workers in the district, and had breakfast courtesy of Dishoom.  

The Ladywood Community Project has helped families for over 33 years. Their focus is to help families on low income or in financial hardship. They work towards ensuring that these individuals do not feel isolated while helping to support day-to-day life for these families. 

In 2022, Colmore BID teamed up with Dishoom to create a magical Christmas experience for 18 children, which included a visit from Father Christmas. Thanks to donations from people in the District, we were able to gift a small toy and warm pyjamas to each child.

In 2023, we once again be worked with Dishoom to host a Christmas breakfast event for 12 children. As part of this, we ran a Sponsor a Child with a Gift this Christmas initiative which involved individuals or companies providing Christmas gifts for a child (or more than one). 

Colmore BID provided the individuals or companies with the gender and age of the child and asked that they provided a gift that was new and suitable for their age group, along with a warm item of clothing, such as warm pyjamas or a hat. The suggested spend was between £20 – £40.

Birmingham Children’s Hospital: In December, we supported Birmingham Children’s Hospital’s Celebration Toy Fund appeal. For any child, spending time in hospital – no matter how long or short their stay – can be very trying. What can make their stay more difficult is when they find themselves in hospital during times of celebration, such as Christmas, Diwali, Eid, or their birthday.  

The Birmingham Children’s Hospital team try to make all these occasions magical for the kids who have to spend time in the hospital, to ensure their stay is as exciting, fun and sparkly as it would be if they were at home. The Colmore BID team helped do that too by donating to the Celebration Toy Fund and setting up a JustGiving page for others in the District to be able to do so. 

The Celebration Toy Fund was created specifically to purchase toys and games, so children staying in hospital during these celebrations and religious holidays would receive a present.

The Hospital’s Play Facilitators used these funds to place orders from a specially curated list of gifts, which were chosen using their expert experience. By providing Play Facilitators with the flexibility of the Celebration Toy Fund, it meant Birmingham Children’s Hospital could ensure they had the right number of gifts for ALL kids, whatever their age. 

Colmore BID’s donations ensured the young patients still got their moment of magic at Christmas, on their birthday, or whatever the celebration.

First Class Foundation and Ladywood Community Project: In November and December, we organised and collected food bank and gift donations for the festive season. We worked with First Class Foundation and Ladywood Community Project to support the wider Ladywood community so that they could distribute food boxes to the families they support. 

The Colmore BID team went out and about collecting donations from offices within the District, as well as having a drop off point for donations at the BID offices. The donations of valuable items such as fresh fruit and vegetables, pasta, rice, long life milk, and flour were all gratefully received and put to good use by the charities. 

Suited for Success: In October, we supported Suited for Success with their Bus Launch, securing space for them, and promoting the charity. PwC hosted a celebratory breakfast event in their fabulous offices at One Chamberlain Square in the Colmore Business District, where we celebrated the launch of the exciting new Suited for Success bus, delving into the world of social value and its impact on lives in under-served communities across the West Midlands.

Birmingham business leaders engaged in thought-provoking discussions, interactive sessions, and great networking opportunities, and discovered how social value influences the choices businesses make. People left the event with a better knowledge of how to make connections to create lasting partnerships which make a difference in our community, which will ultimately improve lives for marginalised groups so that can we create a fairer, safer and healthier society.

Colmore BID have already committed to supporting Suited for Success in early 2024 with a clothes donation collection.

Children’s Liver Disease Foundation: On Friday 9 June, we raised money for Children’s Liver Disease Foundation through our Community Games event. We hosted the annual Community Games in the grounds of Birmingham Cathedral and crowned the fabulous team from Sketch Creative as the winners. They demonstrated impressive skills, camaraderie, and a relentless determination to secure the coveted Community Games crown. Sketch Creative was awarded by The Alchemist with a generous prize of £100 voucher to spend at the cocktail bar and restaurant.

The Community Games are about more than just winners and losers. It is a chance for the Colmore Business District to come together as a community, embrace the joy of sportsmanship and support a fantastic cause.

Thanks to our incredible partnership with the amazing folks at Inspire Activity, we managed to raise an amazing total of £480. Every penny went towards supporting the Children’s Liver Disease Foundation, making a tangible difference in the lives of those in need. The Children’s Liver Disease Foundation provides practical assistance and emotional support to over 4,000 children, young adults, and families across the UK.

With 2024 lying ahead of us, it is the perfect time for us to reflect on how our team members have helped build a better community around us, and how that community has helped us to build a better organisation. We can’t wait to make the next year our most charitable yet!