London office achieves record charity fundraising goal with Designability

This year, our London office not only reached but surpassed their charity target, becoming the third office to achieve this milestone! Their exceptional dedication is making a real difference in the community. We caught up with the team to hear all about their exciting journey, creative fundraising ideas, and what made this year's efforts so impactful.

Here's what our chair of the London committee, Ed Bevans, had to say:

Tell us about the charity your office chose to support—why does it mean something to you?

“The charity for the London office this year is Designability. They have been SciPro’s charity partner for the past five years, and I was excited to have the full support of the London office in our fundraising efforts.

Designability is a UK-based charity dedicated to improving the lives of people with disabilities through innovative design solutions. Their mission is to create products and services that empower individuals to live with greater independence and dignity.”

What was your fundraising goal, and how did you come up with that number?

“Our fundraising goal was £5,000—the amount it costs Designability to produce a Wizzybug, an electric wheelchair designed to help children with rare muscular diseases gain greater independence in their lives."

Why did you pick this charity for 2024? What drew you to it?

"SciPro is our Life Sciences recruitment brand, and originally, we wanted a life sciences based charity partner. The WizzyBug is a fully regulated medical device, so in 2018, when I first met Designability, the partnership made sense.

Since then, Designability has grown its offering and now designs and manufactures a number of products for individuals with disabilities. One of the products they designed was a charger for electric vehicles, a product closely aligned with our Clean Energy brand, Piper Maddox.

Additionally, in the years before Designability became the official London charity, we had raised £15,000 for them, and we were really keen to hit the £20k+ milestone with the help of the whole office.

With a direct connection to two of the three brands in the office, plus the relationship we’ve built with the team there and the milestone figure of £20,000, Designability was the perfect pick for London’s 2024 charity partner."

What’s been your favourite moment or the most rewarding part of working on this charity project?

"My favourite moment has been the Masquerade Black Tie Ball. Firstly, it was great to spend time with such dedicated and creative individuals from the London CSR committee. On top of that, it was a lot of fun to organise a gala ball for the entire office, and then have the chance to blow off steam and enjoy the night when it finally happened!

Close behind that was being invited by the team at Designability to attend the Third Sector Awards, which was a massive event at the Royal Lancaster Hotel in Hyde Park. Dario Canini from Designability was nominated for an award. It was amazing to spend time with the team from Designability and learn about the incredible work from so many UK charities.

My least favourite moment was 20 kilometers into the Battersea half marathon—just as the pain started kicking in!"

How did your team hit the target and make an impact in the community?

"We raised funds through a variety of methods. Tom Dacey and Ellis Ward both ran a half marathon, while Oliver Wood took on the Three Peaks Challenge. Nick Mahoney completed an ultra marathon.

Sarah Bouvier and Margareth Dauphard did a sensational job organising a black-tie gala event, which became a real highlight—not just for the CSR team, but for the London office in 2024.

We also participated in a Thames River Clean-Up, spending a morning removing litter from the Thames (you’d be amazed at what washes up!)."

Did your team come up with any cool or creative fundraising ideas that you’d suggest to others?

“The black-tie gala was excellent, featuring an auction, the opportunity to “buy” time off for a late start, and several smaller ways to raise money. Other than that, it was all hard work and the dedication of so many people in the London office who were passionate about supporting Designability.

A Huge Shoutout!

A massive well done to Ed, chair of the committee, and the entire London office for their hard work and commitment in not only reaching but surpassing their charity target! Their enthusiasm and teamwork have set the bar high, inspiring all of us to get involved and make a positive impact in our communities.