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Initium’s Community Support Team

Following our move to employee ownership in 2022, Initium (formerly BCMS) established a dedicated team to manage and allocate a substantial charity budget, and help manage, plan and deliver a range of initiatives. The Community Support team is engaged with a variety of organisations, both local to us here in Newbury, Berkshire, nationally, and even across continents!

In our first financial year as an employee-owned business, this team allocated and distributed a fund to multiple good causes.These included

  • Partnerships with the Berkshire and Cheshire Community Foundations – regional charitable organisations who raise and distribute money directly to vital local causes
  • Newborn clothing collections for Basingstoke-based Safe – a non-profit charity offering support to families including Pregnancy Crisis, Post-Abortion, Miscarriage and Bereavement
  • Donation to the Turkey-Syria DEC Earthquake Appeal after the devastating disasters early in 2023
  • Supporting the Berkshire Community Foundation ‘Together for Women Event’, to raise awareness about domestic abuse and modern slavery within the county
  • Donation to the Sumatran Orangutan Society – which helps endangered orangutans to thrive in three unique and precious ecosystems, the last remaining habitats of the Sumatran and Tapanuli orangutans
  • Monthly contributions for the Snowdrop Foundation, which primarily supports projects in India, including St Mark’s School in Kakinada, which educates 450 children and provides financial support and accommodation.

In addition, the Community Support Team organises dedicated Volunteer Days at local organisations. These include helping out at Living Paintings, who are located right next to our HQ near Newbury, and produce amazing audio and tactile books for blind children and adults.Our colleagues also helped with the BBC One Show-featured Coronation Project, where Living Paintings is giving away thousands of free Coronation gifts to help blind and visually impaired children join the Coronation Celebrations for King Charles III.

We are regular visitors to West Berkshire Community Hospital to assist the amazing team at Newbury Cancer Care, who support people who have been diagnosed with cancer and other life-threatening or terminal illnesses.

We have strong values around Clients, Colleagues and Community – it’s amazing what a team of 28 driven people can do.

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