Columbia Threadneedle Foundation is excited to embark on a new three year partnership with SEO London. SEO (Sponsors for Educational Opportunity) prepares talented students from ethnic minority or low socioeconomic backgrounds for career success. The Foundation will provide £10,000 a year for the next three years to support SEO Advance, a programme that identifies, inspires and trains talented students in years 11-13, broadening their horizons through access to academic, professional and enrichment opportunities.

Columbia Threadneedle Director and Foundation Trustee Nicolas Janvier said: “The team at SEO are doing great work at the grass roots level providing the needed exposures and helping students further develop the self-confidence, belief and skills necessary for future career success. I am proud to work for a firm that has decided to walk the walk on workplace diversity by partnering with SEO and investing in the development of diverse talent.”

We’re delighted to announce that our partnership with JP Morgan Chase Foundation to fund and support Toynbee Hall’s Money Mentors programme has been shortlisted for the 2017 Business Charity Awards’ Consortium Award.

Higher than ever numbers of London households are living in debt, with poor financial knowledge leading to additional direct financial costs (the Poverty Premium), growing mental and physical health issues and an evident sense of despair for far too many families. This challenge inspired London-based charity Toynbee Hall, Columbia Threadneedle Foundation and J.P. Morgan Chase Foundation to work together to scale an innovative financial education programme - Money Mentors – across London.

Money Mentors seeks to build practical knowledge, improve money management skills, enhance savings habits and build confidence that is then shared through peer-on-peer mentoring and through support groups within vulnerable communities. Over 90 individual “Money Mentors” were trained through 2016 and to date have shared their newfound knowledge and skills with over 1,500 people.   

One Money Mentor commented:‘I think it has changed my life phenomenally, I now have the confidence to challenge myself and understand the difference between wanting something and needing something for me or my family.’

The University of Salford has conducted an independent evaluation to assess the impact of Year 1 of Toynbee Hall’s Community Money Mentors Programme, supported by Columbia Threadneedle Foundation and J.P. Morgan Foundation. The report found Money mentors has helped to increase financial knowledge, money management and confidence in people across London. Money Mentors graduates have also increased knowledge, improved their money management skills, enhanced savings habits and improved their wellbeing. The evaluation report found that:

• The proportion of Money Mentors reporting being okay or very good at managing their money more than doubled from 43% to 94%.
• The tendency to do weekly/monthly budgeting increased from 57% to 83%.
• The tendency to plan ahead increased from 49% to 77%.
• While just of 50% of Money Mentors reported saving at the start of the programme, by the end nearly 90% claimed to be saving
• Participants reported being more aware of their rights as consumers and opportunities to switch. Many had challenged existing service providers to lower their offer or had switched provider.

On 27 September, Aldermen Fiona Woolf and Vincent Keaveney visited Columbia Threadneedle’s Cannon Place headquarters in London to celebrate City Giving Day, an initiative where the Lord Mayor's Office champions the charity activities that companies and organisations undertake to support society and the community. In recognition of our efforts in this area, Fiona and Vincent dropped in on our latest Money Mentors training session, to find out more about our work with charity partner Toynbee Hall, and the rest of our volunteering programme.

Foundation Trustees Alison Jefferis and Nicolas Janvier visited Hornfair Park BMX Track in Greenwich to see Access Sport's award winning London BMX Legacy programme in action. The programme, which uses BMX to introduce cycling to school children across London, is having a huge impact in terms of physical and social benefits and confidence building, particularly for girls many of who have not engaged in sport before. Access Sport typically partners with the local council to build the track, often rejuvenating neglected fields or park areas, and then works with local schools and community groups to run training sessions.

Volunteers joined City Harvest to deliver surplus food to homeless shelters around West London, starting the day collecting chicken from Nandos and ending it unloading baby supplies destined for relief efforts, in a pub car park in Hayes! City Harvest works every day to collect and redistribute surplus food from restaurants and supermarkets around the capital, handling approximately 5 tonnes of food per week. Thanks to City Harvest for the opportunity to help!

Columbia Threadneedle volunteers enjoyed a day at the seaside (including fish and chips!), hosting a day trip to Southend for elderly members of St Hilda’s East, a vibrant community centre in East London.

Columbia Threadneedle Foundation's Swindon team were recognised in the Swindon Advertiser for supporting the charity Threshold which is campaigning to shine a light on the plight of Swindon's homeless.

A team of more than 30 volunteers from Columbia Threadneedle enjoyed the Spring weather at Spitalfields City Farm, an essential resource for local people, and an outdoor classroom that offers educational tours to local disadvantaged schools.

For the second year running Columbia Threadneedle’s Swindon team threw their backing behind families living in properties of local social enterprise Bromford, with a donation of 101 chocolate Easter eggs. Marcus Beard, of the Columbia Threadneedle Foundation, said: "We have a strong partnership with Bromford; our team in Swindon donate clothing, toys and books throughout the year. The Easter egg drive is the pinnacle of our donating - we are so pleased we can help make a difference to families in our community at this time."

Natalie Hardy, senior support worker at Bromford, said: “We’re really grateful for the continued support from Columbia Threadneedle Investments who, like ourselves, are committed to delivering positive change in our communities. Easter isn’t an extravagant time many of the children across our Swindon and Wiltshire services and these chocolate eggs, bought and donated by colleagues at Columbia Threadneedle – have really brought a smile to so many of their faces.”

Columbia Threadneedle’s team in Switzerland hosted an annual candle-dipping event to raise money for Switzerland’s Childhood Cancer Research Foundation (Kinderkrebsforschung), the only private organisation in the country that exclusively carries out research in the area of childhood cancer and juvenile blood illness.

Head of Swiss Distribution Christian Trixl explains: "Seven years ago we started to invite clients and their families to a Christmas event where we asked people for a donation to make a hand-dipped candle. The funds raised are matched by a donation from Columbia Threadneedle Foundation, providing vital funds which help the Research Foundation continue their studies into finding a cure.

The event has become one of the biggest social occasions within the Swiss fund management industry, allowing us to make an important contribution as an industry to our community and broader social environment."

Columbia Threadneedle Foundation is excited to embark on a new three year partnership with SEO London. SEO (Sponsors for Educational Opportunity) prepares talented students from ethnic minority or low socioeconomic backgrounds for career success. The Foundation will provide £10,000 a year for the next three years to support SEO Advance, a programme that identifies, inspires and trains talented students in years 11-13, broadening their horizons through access to academic, professional and enrichment opportunities.

Columbia Threadneedle Director and Foundation Trustee Nicolas Janvier said: “The team at SEO are doing great work at the grass roots level providing the needed exposures and helping students further develop the self-confidence, belief and skills necessary for future career success. I am proud to work for a firm that has decided to walk the walk on workplace diversity by partnering with SEO and investing in the development of diverse talent.”

We’re delighted to announce that our partnership with JP Morgan Chase Foundation to fund and support Toynbee Hall’s Money Mentors programme has been shortlisted for the 2017 Business Charity Awards’ Consortium Award.

Higher than ever numbers of London households are living in debt, with poor financial knowledge leading to additional direct financial costs (the Poverty Premium), growing mental and physical health issues and an evident sense of despair for far too many families. This challenge inspired London-based charity Toynbee Hall, Columbia Threadneedle Foundation and J.P. Morgan Chase Foundation to work together to scale an innovative financial education programme - Money Mentors – across London.

Money Mentors seeks to build practical knowledge, improve money management skills, enhance savings habits and build confidence that is then shared through peer-on-peer mentoring and through support groups within vulnerable communities. Over 90 individual “Money Mentors” were trained through 2016 and to date have shared their newfound knowledge and skills with over 1,500 people.   

One Money Mentor commented:‘I think it has changed my life phenomenally, I now have the confidence to challenge myself and understand the difference between wanting something and needing something for me or my family.’

With our support, national children's charity The Art Room is staging a high profile fundraising project in leading London department store Selfridges. For six weeks from 30 April, The Art Room will have a major presence in Selfridges with three exciting in-store projects that will celebrate this leading charity and raise invaluable funds for its work.

Over 90 chairs have been transformed by prominent artists, designers and architects including Sarah Campbell, Paul Smith, Sebastian Conran, Lulu Guinness and 2013 Threadneedle Prize winner Lisa Wright. The chairs are suspended in Selfridges' main Atrium space and from 22 May will be auctioned online. The chairs represent the practise of The Art Room, where children work with trained practitioners to transform everyday items such as chairs, lampshades, aprons and clocks, as an introduction to the sense of empowerment found through transforming ordinary objects into something individual and creative.

In addition, a pop-up Art Room in Selfridges will host workshops. Finally, students of The Art Room have worked with the Selfridges creative team to transform one of the stores windows.

In 2013 Columbia Threadneedle Foundation committed to a long-term partnership with The Art Room, which supports children who are experiencing emotional and behavioural difficulties. 

Columbia Threadneedle’s Property team combined forces with office design specialists Morgan Lovell, to help refurbish the showers at the Whitechapel Mission, a charity dedicated to providing a lifeline to homeless people caught in the cycles of poverty, hopelessness and dependency. Every day the Mission provides food, clothing, and shelter to as many as 300 people who come every morning for a hot breakfast and to have a shower after a night sleeping on the street.

Over the last 20 years the showers had become very tired. With the need to refurbish them getting desperate, the Foundation provided a grant of £15,000 for the materials, and Morgan Lovell very generously donated their time and expertise to manage the project and provide the man-power. Over the course of two weeks, the windows and ventilation system were replaced, along with all the tiles on the shower walls. Mouldy ceiling tiles were removed or repainted, new non-slip materials put down on the floors, and the plumbing and shower equipment brought up to date. Sincere thanks must go to Morgan Lovell, along with Columbia Threadneedle’s Property team. 

Toynbee Hall and Columbia Threadneedle Foundation are pleased to publish the Money Mentors Evaluation Report. Funded by the Foundation, the report evaluates the success of Toynbee Hall’s Money Mentors programme in Tower Hamlets, a pioneering initiative that aims to improve participants’ financial confidence, increase their financial capability and reduce financial exclusion. The report established a Social Return on Investment of £3 for every £1 spent.

The evaluation focused on the differences that attending the Money Mentors programme has made to the finances, health and personal lives of participants and found that:

• 65% of participants have more confidence in their financial future
• 48% of participants experienced a positive change in their budgeting skills
• Those who describe themselves as ‘always struggling’ decreased from 40% to 2%
• 54% of participants felt less isolated
• 43% of participants felt that their relationships with family and friends had improved
• Regular saving increased from 10% to 49%.

Money Mentors works with individuals to improve their money management and budgeting skills and give them the confidence and communication skills to share their learning in the community. Over 350 people have now graduated from the programme and have gone on to train a further 350 in the community. This is an excellent achievement in Tower Hamlets, a borough where 47% of people owe money and 27% are behind on their payments”.
Graham Fisher, Chief Executive, Toynbee Hall

The Foundation provided a grant to support The Sandwich People, a social enterprise project run by The Salvation Army that delivers freshly made sandwiches, fair trade chocolate and snacks to local companies in Swindon - including Columbia Threadneedle - on a daily basis.

The Sandwich People provides individuals with an opportunity to get back into a regular routine, undertake training, socialise, and develop work skills. Participants undertake professionally accredited food handling training and have the opportunity to be assessed for a qualification in customer service. This commitment was recently recognised with a five star award from the Swindon Borough Council’s Safety and Food Team. The Sandwich People aims to help individuals back into work, providing training and supporting them to develop new skills. It also aims to build confidence amongst participants, through routine, creating new positive social networks and by teamwork.