Law Firm To Transform Office Into Comic Relief Call Centre

If you’re donating money to Comic Relief by phone this Red Nose Day your call might be answered by a volunteer at Irwin Mitchell’s head office in Sheffield. 

The city centre based law firm has recruited over 237 volunteers to help take calls from generous viewers of the BBC 1 live show, making donations to Comic Relief, this Red Nose Day, on Friday, 15 March.

It is the first time that Irwin Mitchell has been able to offer its call centre facility thanks to an upgrade in the firm’s IT and telephony systems.

After Comic Relief selected the law firm as one of its official call handling providers last month, the team had the daunting task of filling 250 time slots between 6-1am.

Thankfully employees of the firm, along with their family and friends, have now stepped up to the challenge to make sure calls from viewers eager to donate on the big night will be answered.

Some of Irwin Mitchell’s key suppliers, Vodafone, Jaywing and Roc Technologies (formerly Esteem), have kindly donated refreshments for the volunteers to keep them going into the early hours of the morning.

The team have also organised an array of games, face painting and activities to create a fun community spirit in the office, while the live TV show is streamed on big screens.

Organiser, Alex Lloyd, Head of the Contact Centre, at Irwin Mitchell said: “It’s been a mammoth task to fill 250 time slots with volunteers but thanks to the amazing community of colleagues at Irwin Mitchell, and their family and friends, we’re ready to make it a night to remember.

“The firm was founded over 100 years ago in Sheffield and I’m really proud that we’re building on that history by being a Comic Relief call centre for the first time ever this Red Nose Day. So if you’re ringing up to make a donation on Red Nose Day, you might just be talking to someone local.”   

Comic Relief was founded in 1985 by the comedy scriptwriter Richard Curtis and comedian Lenny Henry in response to famine in Ethiopia. Every two years the charity runs a Red Nose Day appeal to raise funds to tackle inequality and making lasting change.