Irwin Mitchell Nominates Roundabout As Charity of the Year

A charity which provides support to young people affected by homelessness is set to benefit after lawyers at the Sheffield office of Irwin Mitchell nominated it to be their Charity of the Year (COTY) for 2018.

The national law firm’s COTY initiative sees staff holding a range of events throughout the year to raise funds for 13 good causes in the vicinity of each Irwin Mitchell office, which have been selected by staff through a vote.

The programme is part of the work of the Irwin Mitchell Charities Foundation, an independent charity which last year celebrated its 20th anniversary and has raised more than £1.6 million for charities in the UK and abroad.

This year, the Sheffield office of Irwin Mitchell has voted to support Roundabout, a charity which provides shelter, support and life skills to young people aged between 16 and 24 who are affected by or at risk of homelessness.

Niall Baker, Regional Managing Partner at Irwin Mitchell’s Sheffield office, said: 

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“The Charity of the Year initiative has been a fundamental part of our efforts to actively support the local communities where we are based for many years and we are proud to have helped a number of incredible causes along the way.

“Roundabout is a fantastic cause and we are already hard at work planning out the range of events which will be held across the year to raise vital funds to support the incredible work it does.” Niall Baker - Chairman of IM Asset Management & Partner

The Sheffield office of Irwin Mitchell has previously supported charities including Support Dogs and Paces, this year it is the turn of Roundabout.

First established in 1977, Roundabout has helped more than 150,000 young people beat homelessness. As well as operating a hostel, the charity has a resettlement team, a supporting tenants team and also a homeless prevention service created to offer mediation and advice to those at risk of becoming homeless. 

It also operates a peer education programme which sees young people who have experienced homelessness deliver sessions at schools to break down stereotypes and raise awareness of the issue. Shauna, who lost her mother when she was just nine-years-old, is just one of the people who’ve benefited from services like this which are offered by Roundabout. By the age of 17 she was facing homelessness but thanks to the charity, Shauna was able to move into Roundabout’s hostel. The charity also supported Shauna to return to college and mediation sessions helped her to improve her relationship with her father. Now living independently Shauna is now a qualified youth worker and has volunteered at Roundabout giving talks to raise awareness of the issues of youth homelessness. You can read more about her story here. 

Funds raised by Irwin Mitchell will go towards extending the latter project, while the law firm will also provide work experience opportunities to young people supported by the charity. Staff, who are each given 14 hours per year to volunteer for good causes, will also be encouraged to devote some of their allowance to supporting the charity as it moves into new premises.

Ben Keegan, the CEO of Roundabout, said: “We are absolutely thrilled to be chosen as Irwin Mitchell’s charity of the year. 

“As increasing numbers of young people are turning to Roundabout for help, we are keen to extend our work in Sheffield’s schools to help prevent young people becoming homeless. Our partnership with Irwin Mitchell will help us to achieve this aim.”