An award-winning financial investment company at the heart of Bristol, Hargreaves Lansdown (HL) is a business fully aware of its responsibility to the community, and the impact it can have on the lives of people in the city.
It is this desire to make a difference that led HL to the work of Bristol Sport Foundation and the Nascence Project, designed to bring business and community together through the life-changing impact of sport.
Since 2018, staff from HL have thrust themselves into work with the Foundation, using their allocated Corporate Social Responsibility time to volunteer on community programmes, ranging from classroom-based lessons to the astonishing annual Celebration of Sport Week at Ashton Gate Stadium.
HL’s Head of Communications, Danny Cox, says the business is proud of its work in the community and its relationship with Bristol Sport Foundation.
“It’s really important for us to be part of the local community for a whole variety of reasons,” he said.
“We are part of the local community – we have around 1600 employees that live and work in and around the city, so therefore being part of that community means we are supporting and giving back, which is absolutely vital for us.
“The Bristol Sport Foundation is a great cause for us, because it connects us into places where we wouldn’t normally be directly connected into. We can see the great value of the work that it does – it’s all about bringing people together and changing lives through sport, which is such a fantastic galvaniser of thought and attitudes and work.
“For us, it’s a great catalyst. As a business, we need the Foundation to make things easy for us, and they do that very nicely.
“Apart from anything, the volunteering is great fun to do, but you can see the value that you are giving when you are involved in those sessions, when you see the benefit that the adults and children are getting from it, it is extremely rewarding for them and for us.”
“The Bristol Sport Foundation is a great cause for us, because it connects us into places where we wouldn’t normally be directly connected into. We can see the great value of the work that it does – it’s all about bringing people together and changing lives through sport, which is such a fantastic galvaniser of thought and attitudes and work.”
As well as working with coaches on Sums & Scrums – a rugby-themed primary school numeracy programme – on Bristol Bears matchdays, the Community Foundation’s Bright Sparks programme, and at Celebration of Sport Week, which sees more than 1,000 young people head to Ashton Gate for a three-day festival of sport, HL’s relationship with Nascence also supports the health and well-being of our staff through Tag rugby, netball and basketball festivals as part of the Foundation’s Corporate Sporting Festival series, with HL teams not only benefitting from both the physical and social elements of the event, but also enjoying some local bragging rights in the process. In addition, dozens of HL employees have also saddled up to take on Break the Cycle, the annual charity bike ride, further enhancing the business’ multi-layered engagement with Nascence.
The money raised at these tournaments is invested back into the Foundation and its partner charities – and Danny believes the overall Nascence experience has been a real ‘eye opener’ for his staff.
“If you are living in parts of the city that don’t see the deprivation that you get in other parts of the city, it’s absolutely eye-opening,” he added.
“From that perspective, you’re developing as a more rounded individual. The work that Bristol Sport Foundation does in connection with Hargreaves Lansdown, we can make sure that we help bridge some of those gaps.
“From my personal experience of volunteering with the Foundation, I just thought it was fantastic to see the smiles on the kids’ faces when you are getting involved in play, reading, and in the Sums and Scrums numeracy programme, it’s just a great way of adding value.
“So, for me, it’s very rewarding, but you can see the kids are getting great benefit as well.”
Paul Glanville, Corporate Partnerships Manager at Bristol Sport Foundation, said: “We are delighted to see the working relationship with our Nascence Partner, HL go from strength to strength. It is great to see the volunteers commit meaningful time and energy into the volunteering relationships, helping the young people we work with develop the right skills to succeed in the future.
“The positive outcomes achieved from this collaboration are a great example of the impact Bristol Sport Foundation’s business and community engagement programme, The Nascence Project, is making on many young lives in Bristol.
“Please contact me (paul.glanville@bristol-sport.co.uk) if you would like to find out how you can get involved. As a Nascence Partner you would be amongst great company, joining fellow professionals from the Bristol business community with a strong sense of purpose, committed to working together to improve our society.”
