Staff At Law Firm’s Manchester Office Raise £13,000

A charity that supports those affected by poverty and homelessness across Greater Manchester is set to benefit from a £13,000 donation from Irwin Mitchell’s city centre office, after staff at the firm spent a year raising funds for the good cause. 

Mustard Tree was voted for by staff at the office to be their Charity of the Year for 2017 as part of a nationwide initiative by the Irwin Mitchell Charities Foundation (IMCF). 

Established in 1997, IMCF is an independent registered charity set up by the firm which has donated more than £1.6 million to third sector organisations. 

Following 12 months of fundraising activities, including a campaign to raise £20,000 in a month to celebrate IMCF’s 20th anniversary, nationally, Irwin Mitchell raised £180,000 during 2017 – a record for the firm. 

Some of the activities employees in Manchester took part in to fundraise included taking part in a sponsored obstacle course race, weekly dress down days, raffles and bake sales. 

Kind hearted staff bolstered their support for the good cause by donating used office wear to help those who cannot afford clothes for job interviews. 

The bumper donation is so significant it could be used by the charity to support Freedom Project, their three month flagship programme to support people suffering from multiple disadvantages access a holistic package designed to improve their health, wellbeing and employability opportunities.

As an additional gesture the firm donated two new telephones to the charity to help them reduce their operational costs so more funds can be spent on helping their patrons.

Roy Beckett, Regional Managing Partner at Irwin Mitchell’s Manchester office, said: 

Expert Opinion

It’s an honour to be able to provide this donation to a truly fantastic cause in our local community.

Last year we celebrated 20 years of the IMCF and I am delighted that thanks to the creativity and generosity of Irwin Mitchell employees, we made our anniversary year a record breaking one for us.

Everyone at Irwin Mitchell is passionate about giving back to the communities we operate in and making a real difference to the lives of those supported through our Charities of the Year programme.

We are incredibly proud of what we achieved last year. Hearing how Mustard Tree could use the donation, and the positive impact that will have on those in poverty or dealing with homelessness in the region, is spurring on our staff to think of bigger and better ways to fundraise for this year’s good cause.
Roy Beckett - Partner

Sophie Appleton, Mustard Tree’s Corporate Partnership Manager, said: “Irwin Mitchell has been a fantastic hands on supporter of Mustard Tree for 2017. They have taken on a range of exciting fundraisers including sponsored runs and Rough Runner all of which has helped to raise our profile as well as vital cash funding. The staff have also been amazing at making regular drop-ins to our Ancoats Hub where they have brought massive amounts of dried food to support our kitchen and food club. Mustard Tree Irwin Mitchell’s staff for their wonderful support.”