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COMPANIES CHALLENGED TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE
MAKE A DIFFERENCE DAY
25 OCTOBER 2003

CSV’s Make a Difference Day, the UK’s biggest day of volunteering, is challenging businesses to get involved in its 2003 campaign. Make a Difference Day provides a great opportunity for companies to kick-start or enhance their corporate social responsibility programme and benefit their bottom line. 
Recent research shows 84% of the British public take a company’s activities in the community into account when forming an opinion of that organisation (MORI 2002). However, a new report by the Work Foundation suggests almost six out of ten (58 per cent) of the 277 organisations surveyed have no strategy for social responsibility or corporate citizenship. Make a Difference Day is a chance for companies to make a positive difference in their communities. Organised by the UK’s largest volunteering charity CSV, the campaign asks people to give time, rather than their money, for one day. 
Make a Difference Day is supported by Barclays community investment programme, as part of the bank’s world-class volunteering scheme: 1 in 4 employees take part in volunteering activities. Last year over 8,500 Barclays employees participated in CSV’s Make a Difference Day, along with a range of other companies, including Ford Motor Company, Leeds Housing Federation, Abbey National and Parsons Brinckerhoff. Activities ranged from serving sandwiches to the homeless, donating toys to a children’s ward, to renovating a sports club and helping out at a wildlife centre. 
Barry Wade, editor of HR Gateway, said: “Going out and giving something back to your local community boosts staff morale and improves workplace performance, as employees feel good about themselves and their companies – it’s also a great opportunity for team building, without the paint-balling or white water rafting!”
Businesses can benefit from:
• Positive Media Attention: 76% of Make a Difference Day activities gained print or broadcast media coverage in 2002, with a campaign value of £1.5 million.
• Improved employee morale and work performance – adding variety to your employee’s work: 4 in 5 British employees say a company’s demonstration of commitment to the local community has an impact on pride in the company they work for (1 in 5 say it has a great deal of impact) MORI, 2000 
• A free teambuilding or training exercise, developing new skills: “The experience taught us far more about teamwork in one day than any course could.”  Clare Waymouth, Barclays.
• A staff recruitment and retention tool.
• Enhanced relationships within the local community.
• An opportunity to jump start a longer-term volunteering programme. 
Barclays has announced this month that it will continue to support Make a Difference Day for a further three years. Sir Peter Middleton said: “This is a fantastic opportunity to make a real difference to your local community, just by giving up a few hours of your time. I am looking forward to getting stuck in this year. I hope that more businesses will encourage their staff to volunteer and support local Make a Difference Day projects around the country.”

Britain’s best-known Paralympic athlete Tanni Grey Thompson has signed up to support CSV’s Make a Difference Day, the UK’s biggest day of volunteering. 
Tanni has performed at world-class level for the past thirteen years, in distances ranging from 100m to the marathon. Her 13 Paralympic medals, nine medal placings in the London Marathon and her comprehensive set of British and World Records make her achievements second to none in the disability sport arena.
Tanni said: “Whatever your background and whatever your talents, Make a Difference Day is a great way to go out into your community and have a positive impact on the lives of others. You can choose what you do – whether you decide to team up with friends to paint a youth club, raise awareness about disabilities or hold an aerobics classs for local elderly residents – all it involves is some time on the day. With a bit of effort you can achieve big things!” 
Louise Jones a volunteer from Scope, a partner organistaion of Make a Difference Day said: "Make a Difference Day is a great way to promote the skills and talents disabled people have to offer - it is important to recognise not just the disability, but the abilities of disabled individuals. As a disabled person myself and a volunteer for Scope, I hope that many more projects like these will be set up in the future, to help improve disability awareness." Scope's London community teams project for Make a Difference Day 2003 will involve disabled people arranging and providing services for disabled individuals in the community. 

NEW RESEARCH GIVES INSIGHT INTO VOLUNTEERING TRENDS

New research released this month reveals that people who take part in CSV’s Make a Difference Day, the UK’s biggest day of volunteering, continue to volunteer after the day. 
A snap shot survey carried out amongst 100 people who took part in Make a Difference Day 2002, reveals that 64% had never tried volunteering before. However, their taste of volunteering encouraged them to do it again: 61% of participants have volunteered again since last year’s campaign.
The research also shows a strong interest amongst the young to volunteer: 53% of volunteers who took part in Make a Difference Day were under 25.
Organised by the UK’s largest volunteering charity CSV, Make a Difference Day asks people to give time, rather than their money, for one day.  The campaign is supported by Barclays community investment programme, as part of the bank’s world-class volunteering scheme (1 in 4 employees take part in volunteering activities).
Last year over 62,000 volunteers got involved in nearly 3,500 activities.For this year's event on 25 October, over 75,000 people are expected to take part in more than 4000 activities. Participants are aged between 2 ½ and 105 and activities range from giving blood and litter picking, to holding a dance workshop, building a BMX track on waste ground or renovating a sports centre – anything which has a direct impact on local communities.

Other results from the new Make a Difference Day research include:
• 99% of volunteers enjoyed the day
• 77% of volunteers have recommended the campaign to others

Additional findings and volunteer comments:
• “The best thing about Make a Difference Day was seeing the integration of disabled and able-bodied people working together” (Rowan Cobelli, Bournemouth) 
• “It felt good to be doing something for the environment and the community” (Ian Horspool, Broadstone)

For more information on taking part, visit the website www.csv.org.uk or contact Sara Burdon on 020 7643 1433 or email sburdon@csv.org.uk