Philanthropy and Income Generation Our extraordinary work has always depended on our amazing supporters’ generosity; every day, the work that we do provides people with an opportunity to make a difference and help shape a life for a better future. As we journeyed into 2020, a pivotal milestone in our organisation’s history (our 150th anniversary year), no one could have predicted that our year of celebration would mark one of the darkest moments in recent history - a global pandemic that has brought the world as we know it to a halt. During the year we launched a public Covid-19 appeal, and we were humbled by people’s kind generosity and give thanks to everyone who donated or provided gifts in kind, such as vital PPE equipment, or technology such as iPads. We continued to develop our partnerships with a number of local, national and global corporate companies, working with them to develop meaningful relationships that deliver real impact that is aligned to their environmental, social and governance goals (ESG). Key highlights during the year include the team securing a new three-year strategic partnership with Apache, an Aberdeen and Houston-based oil company.
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We were delighted to secure a commercial participation agreement (CPA) with Maersk Training. Maersk are now delivering accredited mental health first aid training and courses for employers and employees across the UK. VSA receive an agreed fixed amount per person for every course participant. Work continues in securing income towards our capital Changing Lives campaign; naturally as a result of the pandemic many funders paused their normal funding programmes to solely focus on Covid-19. With the build due to complete in the summer of 2021, the team are looking to re-establish funding towards the campaign and it is hoped that our major fundraising ball - which was postponed in 2020 and is scheduled to take place at Balmoral Castle - can proceed in late 2021 with funds raised going towards the appeal.
