Clarion in the Community: Creating Better Lives

“No one has ever become poor by giving.”

Anne Frank

The Clarion Welsby Foundation was established in 2011 with the clear objective of helping others. Our preference is for funding specific projects that will have a clear and measurable outcome, in terms of the quality of life of individuals and families.

Maybe surprisingly – for an organisation in the financial sector, we don’t always believe money can solve everything – we place huge value on expertise and personal dedication too.

Over the years we have supported a number of smaller charities, where our involvement really makes a difference. With the launch of the ‘Best Service, Best Workplace, Best World’ project, we have taken stock and assessed how well we have been doing in meeting our objective of creating better lives in the community.

Here are a few examples of how we have been doing it…

Climb High – A community project for disadvantaged children

Climb High is a project funded by Clarion through Adventures Await, the charity partners of Rock Over climbing centre in Manchester.

The Climb High project introduces disadvantaged children from Cheshire and Greater Manchester to indoor climbing, providing a range of activities and qualifications that will improve personal and social skills, physical and mental health and employability.

Our Founder, Ron Walker recently visited the centre and witnessed first hand the difference Adventures Await makes to individuals and their families.

Girls Out Loud – Investing in the next generation

We have also sponsored our Chartered Financial Planner Ella Davies to become a Big Sister with the charity Girls Out Loud – a 12-month mentorship programme to empower teenage girls who are at risk of being overlooked, to help channel their potential and make better life choices.

We are proud to say Ella will begin her training in July, in readiness for meeting her assigned Little Sister in the next academic year and we are looking forward to seeing their progress.

Ella said: “I first came across Girls Out Loud a few years ago and immediately wanted to be involved. Unfortunately, I was working in quite an intense role at the time and just wasn’t able to commit. I am so pleased to have joined a firm that encourages these initiatives. I am a huge advocate for empowering women, so the Big Sister program perfectly aligns with my values. I can’t wait to start my training and meet my Little Sister in September.”

Supporting national charities

In addition to working with smaller charities, we also support national charities from time to time, here are some examples.

DKMS UK

Staff at Clarion have been doing their bit in the fight against blood cancer recently – with the charity DKMS UK visiting our offices. A number of our team registered as potential stem cell donors and we have helped raise awareness via our social media channels.

We were educated on the difficulties DKMS face in finding suitable donors and the numbers game they have to play. One in four people in need of a stem cell transplant don’t find their match. DKMS is part of a global register so by registering you could save the life of someone here in the UK or, on the other side of the world!

To order your test kit and join Clarion colleagues on the DKMS register visit: www.dkms.org.uk/clarion

Dog A.I.D.

Dog A.I.D. pair volunteer trainers with physically disabled dog owners to transform their family pets into disability assistance dogs. It was wonderful to hear this feedback from Ali, who has benefitted from donations from the Clarion Welsby Foundation.

She said: “When my trainer asked what I wanted, one answer I gave was: ‘I just want to be able to live again’. Yesterday, I went to Southport supported by my dog Finley. For the first time in seven years, I felt alive and just normal. I never would have had the confidence to get on three trains a year ago.”

Clarion founder Ron said: “We are proud to support a charity that empowers people and their pets to form such a strong partnership that can help overcome life‐changing conditions.”

Maggie’s

We were delighted to help the Ladies section at Hale Golf Club hole out at £10,000 in their fundraising for Maggie’s through our chairman Keith Thompson’s connection with the club.

The charity offers much needed free support to anyone with cancer and their families, either at their hospital-adjacent centres or online.