SCOTTISH Friendly Colleagues courageously took on the Three Peaks Challenge and Boycott Your Bed to raise vital funding for Action for Children, participated in festive fundraising activities such as a Bake Sale and Christmas Jumper Day, and donated food packages to vulnerable families. In total, Scottish Friendly raised £25,901.
Colleagues also volunteered to help at Action for Children’s annual fundraising music quiz ‘Never Mind the Business’. These efforts are a continuation of Scottish Friendly’s existing relationship to support Action for Children’s vital work to help vulnerable children, young people, and families.
The Scottish Friendly Children’s Book Tour is supported by Scottish Friendly and organised by the Scottish Book Trust. In 2023, the Scottish Friendly Children’s Book Tour had a busy program of events which took authors and illustrators to many different parts of Scotland, from the Western Isles to Orkney, the Scottish Borders to Dumfries and Galloway.
Many amazing and award-winning authors, illustrators and poets took part in the 2023 tour including Joseph Coelho, Fiona Lumbers and Joseph Elliott. The tour visited a total of over 10,000 pupils (almost 3,000 in-person and 7,000 virtually) across 249 schools (37 in-person and 212 virtually) across 23 local authorities.
Scottish Friendly has also partnered with Developing the Young Workforce, partnering with Bannerman High School in 2023. Through this partnership Scottish Friendly has supported Bannerman High School with career fairs, CV writing and interview skills through workshops.
In September 2022, Scottish Friendly hired its first three apprentices, with a recruitment approach of visiting high schools across Glasgow, North and South Lanarkshire to drive engagement from pupils who may not necessarily believe they have the skills to work within Financial Services. Scottish Friendly appointed three apprentices who each had no previous experience in Financial Services. At the end of 2023, all three achieved an SVQ level 2 in Business and Administration (SCQF 5), with each of them subsequentlyaccepting permanent positions.
Stephen McGee, CEO of Scottish Friendly commented:
“Our commitment to Action for Children, the Scottish Book Trust and Developing the Young Workforce speaks to our overall ambition to create opportunities for financial inclusion and improve the lives and outlook of young people.
“This impactful work resonates with our core values, reflecting our responsibility to empower communities and live up to our purpose for our customers, colleagues, and wider society.
“We recognise strength comes from solidarity and by working together, we believe we can create a meaningful impact to help cultivate a better future. I take great pride in the work we have already done, and we only intend for this to continue.”
