News story
28 March 2025
One of the UK’s leading property and business consultancies that took on the challenge of fundraising for a charity that was based miles away from some of its satellite offices has proved that the right cause and good communication can blow any challenge out of the water – after raising a staggering £38,664.38 for the charity.
Brown&Co joined forces with Addenbrooke’s Charitable Trust (ACT) in April last year, pledging to engage all their 300 employees and fundraise across every one of their 10 UK-based offices.
The firm chose to fundraise for ACT in memory of their colleague Danielle, or Dannii, Spauls, who was treated in Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge but sadly died following a short illness. As the official charity for Addenbrooke’s and the Rosie, ACT funds cutting-edge equipment, groundbreaking research, and improvements to the environment for both staff and patients, above and beyond what the NHS is able to provide.
Marketing Manager Georgia Dawson, who is based in the firm’s Norwich office, said it was a ‘unanimous decision’ to fundraise for ACT after losing Dannii.
Brown&Co Partner, Andrew Fundell, said: “Each year, Brown&Co selects a charity to support. Following the loss of our colleague and friend, Danielle Spauls, after a short illness, we had no hesitation in choosing ACT in recognition of the incredible care and support the hospital provided to her and her family.”
“Though Dannii was based in our Norwich office, all 10 Brown&Co offices came together in her memory, dedicating the year to fundraising for ACT. From conquering the Yorkshire Three Peaks to taking on the Oxford Half Marathon and a Norfolk coastal walk, our teams united in her honour to make a difference.”
Asked if she would recommend other firms, with satellite offices, to fundraise for ACT in this way, Georgia said: “Absolutely, it is so worthwhile. One of our proudest moments was knowing that the money that we are fundraising is going towards funding innovation and specialist staff and specialist equipment to help people like Dannii and their families. So I would say regardless of where you are in the UK, if you wanted to become a corporate partner, I would say with ACT it’s made as easy as it can be.”
Talking about the initial work to get all the staff on board, Georgia said: “Bringing all the offices together was a key focus. With our vast network, with offices across the UK and as far North as Humber, we wanted to ensure everyone felt connected. To do this, Natasha, ACT’s Corporate Partnerships Manager, set up a call with each office and made sure they all had tailored messaging and a particular focus point to drive engagement and that massively helped to not only get employees on board but also help donations come in from the local communities.”
“As well as honouring a colleague, Natasha really stressed the importance of the research that is carried out at Addenbrooke’s – and that it will benefit beyond the Eastern region to hospitals across the whole of the UK.”
“She also came along to our quiz at our Norwich office that was our biggest fundraising event, raising a total of £7,000, and brought a letter with her written by one of the surgeons that had cared for Dannii, which was extremely moving. It was that extra touch that really helped to engage employees and also our clients as well.”
After 12 months of fundraising, Brown&Co presented a cheque for £38,664.38 to Natasha Robertson at their head office in Norwich.
Speaking at the event, Natasha said: “We are so grateful for all the hard work of each and every Brown&Co employee who threw themselves into fundraising with such passion, despite some of them never having heard of Addenbrooke’s Charitable Trust, and Addenbrooke’s Hospital. The fact that all offices came together to raise such an impressive figure shows the high esteem that Addenbrooke’s is held in and that the work it does extends beyond the region both nationally and globally.”
Georgia said fundraising across the satellite offices had brought staff closer – describing this year’s efforts as “larger and more collaborative than ever before.’’
Some of the events included the Lincoln office completing the Yorkshire Three Peaks; the Norfolk offices completing a 12.5 mile coastal walk from Cromer to Cley next the Sea; the St Neots office undertaking a 24-mile bike ride from their offices to the Astra Zeneca hub on the Cambridge Biomedical Campus; and the Banbury office completing the Oxford Half Marathon. In addition to this, the Humber office hosted a clay pigeon shooting afternoon and across the board there were also quiz nights, raffle sweeps, sweepstakes, dress down days and cake sales.
To find out how your company can make a life-saving difference through a partnership with ACT, please get in touch by emailing: corporatepartnerships@act4addenbrookes.org.uk
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