• First initiative funded by the AJ Bell Wage War on Covid fund
• £150,000 raised in the first month through donations from staff, customers, advisers and general public
• £30,000 donation will fund vital foodbank services in and around Manchester and London
• Picture attached – Kirsty Wardlaw from AJ Bell presenting a cheque to FareShare Manchester
AJ Bell, one of the UK’s leading investment platforms, has donated £30,000 to local foodbanks in Manchester and London through FareShare and Salford CVS as the first initiative of its Wage War on COVID campaign.
AJ Bell launched the AJ Bell Wage War on COVID Fund at the beginning of April under the umbrella of the AJ Bell Trust, a UK registered charity. Staff at AJ Bell have donated all or part of their wages for April, May and June to the fund and further donations have been made by customers, financial advisers, the AJ Bell Trust and members of the public. Over £150,000 has been raised so far in the first month. All funds raised will go directly to charities or other causes supporting people affected by COVID-19. More details of the initiative can be found here.
Foodbanks have come under huge pressure due to the COVID-19 pandemic and require funds in order to provide essential meals to those in need during the crisis. AJ Bell is supporting services near its Manchester and London offices via FareShare and Salford CVS.
FareShare redistributes surplus food to charities and community groups – such as foodbanks, domestic violence refuges, schools and homeless shelters – operating in nearly 2,000 towns and cities in the UK. Each week their volunteers help create and distribute around a million meals for vulnerable people, including 232 frontline charities & community groups in Greater Manchester and 224 in London. Since lockdown measures began, FareShare has seen a 90% increase in the amount of food it redistributes to people in need.
Salford Community and Voluntary Services (CVS) is a registered charity responsible for administering the Salford Food Crisis Fund. This fund was set up by NHS Salford CCG, Salford CVS and the Salford Food Share Network to help food crisis organisations deal with the COVID-19 emergency. It makes grants to food banks to allow them to purchase the food and equipment required to deliver food parcels / pre-cooked meals to people’s homes.
Andy Bell, chief executive at AJ Bell, comments:
“The support we’ve had for our Wage War on COVID fund from staff, customers, advisers and the public has been fantastic and quite humbling. It really highlights the community spirit we are seeing everyday right across the country and gives huge encouragement that we will come through this crisis stronger and more resilient than ever. We are now focused on finding great causes to benefit from the fund and foodbanks have been selected as the first initiative.
“We know foodbanks have come under huge pressure due to the COVID-19 outbreak as more people need their vital services and the lock down has created significant logistical challenges. As a company we are proud to be supporting FareShare and Salford CVS to help people in need in the communities near our Manchester and London offices.”
Miranda Kaunang, head of development at FareShare Greater Manchester, comments:
“FareShare is committed to ramping up its support throughout the COVID-19 crisis, providing vital food supplies each week to charities and schools across Greater Manchester, as well as across the UK including London. We welcome the generous donation by AJ Bell, which is needed now more than ever as we work to get intercept more surplus food from the food industry and get it onto the plates of those who need it most.”
Alison Page, chief executive at Salford CVS, comments:
“Salford CVS are proud to be working in partnership with Salford Foodshare Network, NHS Salford CCG and Salford City Council, alongside Salford’s many voluntary organisations and community groups, to support our communities during this pandemic. Partnership working across sectors has never been more important, so we are hugely appreciative of the donation AJ Bell is making to support our efforts to ensure local people can access nutritional food during and beyond lockdown. Truly the Spirit of Salford”
