AJ Bell today launches a new charitable initiative, the ‘AJ Bell Futures Foundation’, and announces its first two principal charity partners of the Foundation. AJ Bell will initially contribute 0.5% of its profit before tax to the Foundation each year and staff will be given time to volunteer for the organisations supported by the Foundation.
One of the core aims of the AJ Bell Futures Foundation is to help people develop new skills and build experience that can help them achieve a more positive future. The primary focus will be on people in AJ Bell’s local communities from disadvantaged backgrounds or who have faced significant life challenges, giving them opportunities they otherwise wouldn’t have had to progress in life and ultimately become financially secure and prosperous.
The investment platform whose head office is in Manchester, and which also has offices in Bristol and London, is aiming to develop deep-rooted, long-term partnerships with organisations that help people build positive futures in its communities. It has selected Smart Works and IntoUniversity as its two initial charity partners, each receiving an annual donation of £100,000 from the AJ Bell Futures Foundation for the next two years.
Michael Summersgill, chief executive at AJ Bell, comments:
“As a company, we’ve always supported charitable activities close to our hearts. The AJ Bell Futures Foundation is about taking that one step further.
“Through the Foundation, we will focus on our local communities and initiatives centred around self-advancement, areas where we believe we can make a real difference. We are beginning by partnering with Smart Works and IntoUniversity, two organisations that demonstrably help people build new skills and experience in order to improve their future prospects.
“This is far more than a financial donation, for us this is about making a meaningful and sustained effort to support our communities by also providing the time and resources of our staff to deliver practical resources and value to the organisations we partner with.”
Smart Works
Smart Works exists to help marginalised women break the cycle of rejection and deprivation that results from unemployment. It gives them the confidence they need to reach their full potential, secure employment and change the trajectory of their lives. Each woman is put through a one-to-one coaching session to help them prepare for job interviews, including interview coaching and an appointment with a Smart Works stylist to dress them for success. Smart Works feedback indicates that 93% of women using their service leave feeling more confident about succeeding in their interview and 72% go on to get the job.
As primary partner, AJ Bell has already donated an initial £20,000 – which was doubled by the Big Give’s Women and Girls Match Fund – bringing forward the opening of a Manchester city-centre-based Smart Works service by three months, to April 2023. Further activity will see AJ Bell support additional centre openings across the UK, get involved in various volunteering opportunities throughout the year and help with fundraising efforts, such as the Cycle for Smart Works initiative which takes place 1 – 8 March, to mark International Womens’ Day.
The Smart Work partnership builds on the work already done with AJ Bell’s Money Matters initiative to help women feel good investing by starting an open, honest conversation about the gender investment gap, and how to close it.
Commenting on the partnership, Kate Stephens, Smart Works CEO, said:
“Smart Works is honoured to have been chosen as one of the AJ Bell Future Foundation’s charity partners, and we share a joint commitment to helping women to thrive. Demand for our service has risen sharply following the pandemic and current cost of living crisis. As Smart Works enters its 10th year, we are working to double the number of women we help across the UK to 10,000, and the generous support of AJ Bell will help make that possible.”
IntoUniversity
IntoUniversity supports young people facing significant disadvantage and barriers to future success, to build their capabilities and access opportunities that can better their lives.
AJ Bell and IntoUniversity’s new Future Pathways partnership – will provide transformative support to students aged 13 – 17 to explore different career paths, develop crucial life skills, and realise their potential by making informed choices about their future education and career path. AJ Bell will work closely with the charity to provide taster sessions in the form of insight days, mentorship, and interactive workshops for IntoUniversity students wanting to learn more about a career in financial services.
Commenting on the partnership, Dr Rachel Carr, chief executive at IntoUniversity, said:
“IntoUniversity is very proud to be partnering with the AJ Bell Futures Foundation. This fantastic partnership will provide exciting new insights and opportunities for thousands of young people from across the UK to help them build their capabilities and realise their potential.”
Further information
About Smart Works
Created in September 2013 Smart Works exists to help unemployed women gain the confidence they need to succeed at interview, get the job and transform their lives.
Thanks to the charity’s support in 2021 72% of clients went on to get a job within one month of their Smart Works appointment. As well as providing complete outfits of high-quality clothes for job interviews, beneficiaries also have access to one-to-one interview training and the opportunity to join the Smart Works Network, meeting every month to further their professional and personal development.
Over the next three years the charity aims to double the number of women it helps to 10,000 women a year. This will be done by deepening connections in the communities the charity already serves, opening new centres and providing a digital service for women in need all over the UK.
Smart Works Charity No: 1080609
About IntoUniversity
IntoUniversity is an Education Charity Registered Charity Number 1118525 (England and Wales) and SC049776 (Scotland) which runs local learning centres that are inclusive of all academic abilities and help young people to achieve a university place or another positive destination. IntoUniversity currently runs 39 centres in many of the poorest neighbourhoods across England and Scotland. IntoUniversity centres have a strong track record of improving outcomes for young people in England. In 2021, 66% of IntoUniversity students secured a university place compared with 26.6% of school leavers from similar backgrounds.www.intouniversity.org