paycare

Not-for-profit health cash plan Paycare’s 32 employees have donated £17,171.41 to various charities since the organisation launched its MyGiving benefit in April 2019.

Through the MyGiving initiative, the Wolverhampton-based employer provides all staff with £250 to use as a one-off charity donation, or to add to an existing fundraising activity, increasing their fund total.

Paycare’s employees have used this benefit to donate to various local causes, including Project Give, tackling period poverty among young people, The Good Shepherd Ministry, providing necessities to the poor and homeless, and Bliss Baby Charity, supporting families of babies born premature or unwell.

Before setting up the MyGiving programme, Paycare held an initial meeting to gauge how the initiative would work and how to maximise its success. This was followed by monthly email reminders to ensure employees were utilising their donation and fundraising days, as well as face-to-face catch ups with the senior leadership team to monitor and encourage uptake, and team-wide suggestions for charities and projects that could use the support.

One employee used his MyGiving donation to boost his fund for the Midlands Air Ambulance Charity, for which he completed a five-day trek of the Amazon. Another employee topped up her donation to The Alzheimer’s Society, raising an overall sum of £2,190.41.

The MyGiving benefit is not the only charity initiative Paycare provides for its employees. In 2016, the organisation introduced two additional days holiday solely for the purpose of fundraising or volunteering.

Kevin Rogers (pictured), chief executive officer at Paycare, said: “As a not-for-profit, we’re already committed to donating every spare penny to causes within our local communities, and we’ve shared over £2.2million to date through sponsorships, direct donations, and fundraising.

“Earlier this year, we came together to see how we could do more of this fantastic work whilst making it even more personal to our employees. The concept of MyGiving immediately felt right and offers benefits to everyone involved.

“We encourage our team to utilise the funds and support a cause close to their hearts, and it also helps us as an organisation to reach out to even more people. The results since April have been absolutely fantastic and we’re delighted that it perfectly aligns with our combined mission of helping others."