Many businesses have become Giving Tuesday partners across the years.  Here in the UK, Nat West Group have continued their long association with Giving Tuesday. We asked them why, and how this will happen in 2022:

2022 so far, has been a challenging year for so many. Whether recovering from the impact of the COVID pandemic, witnessing the war in Ukraine and its implications, or feeling the bite of the cost of living crisis, we know it has been tough for many.

#GivingTuesday provides a great opportunity to make a real difference.

Organised this year by the Chartered Institute of Fundraising, NatWest Group are a founding partner, being there from the start when the campaign launched in the UK in 2014. #GivingTuesday is a social media campaign that falls on November 29th, the Tuesday after Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

A global phenomenon, #GivingTuesday has broken successive world records for the most money donated online to charity with the campaign encouraging people to give their voice, time, or money to support these causes.

For 2022 Giving Tuesday will focus on showcasing and celebrating the different ways people can get involved in charities. This means different things to different people. For NatWest Group we will be asking our colleagues to share how they support charity on Workplace (work Facebook) to inspire other colleagues to do the same. The bank will also be on social media, demonstrating our support of the charity sector with the intention that other supporters will share their stories too.

To celebrate Giving Tuesday this year NatWest Group will also be donating £325,000 to charities which its employees and customers support. Since our involvement in Giving Tuesday began, we have donated over £3,000,000 to encourage our employees and customers to get involved in supporting this global day of good, that inspires millions of people to give and celebrates generosity in all its forms.

How employees will support

NatWest Group employees will be encouraged to sign up to our Payroll Giving scheme and donate to charity. If a UK employee signs up for Payroll Giving or increases their current donation by 31 December 2022, the bank will give them a charity donation of £125 which they can then donate to charities of their choice. The UK payroll giving scheme is run through HMRC and provides a simple, tax efficient way for employees to make regular and one-off donations to charity direct from their salary.

NatWest Group are encouraging our employees to volunteer their time to support good causes. One programme that will be active at the time of Giving Tuesday is our tree planting programme with The Conservation Volunteers (TCV). Together with TCV and our employees we are aiming to plant over 100,000 trees in 2022, taking a positive action to support the climate change challenges.

How customers can support

NatWest and Royal Bank of Scotland Reward current account customers can support the campaign by exchanging their MyReward points for a charity donation. There are currently eleven charities to choose from and NatWest Group is making £150,000 available to match customer donations; the bank will match donations up to £50 per customer.

Michael Duncan, Head of Giving Strategy & Programmes at NatWest Group, said: “Giving Tuesday is such an integral part of the charity work that NatWest Group does and we are excited to once again be involved at the forefront. Over the past two and a half years, the charity sector has faced unprecedented difficulties like so many people and businesses across the world. Giving Tuesday provides a great opportunity to say thank you for all the work charities have done during this very difficult period.

We, as a company, recognise the importance of charitable work and this Giving Tuesday we will be encouraging our customers and employees to donate and support in any way they can on November 29th and beyond.”