Argyll & Bute is first Scottish Council in Geared for Giving campaign and council employees increase giving by 600%

The Workplace Giving Scheme enables employees to give to the charity of their choice tax effectively directly from their salaries. Giving to charity in this way can increase all donations by up to 40% more.  This scheme has been in place for a number of years at Argyll and Bute Council but many staff were unaware of the benefits of giving in this way.

Then the Council had a letter from Anne Snelgrove MP.

She had discovered that the Workplace Giving Scheme – with its massive tax benefits to charities – had been in place for over twenty years, but there was only a 2.6% take up in the whole of the UK. She was appalled by this and launched the Geared for Giving Campaign in the House of Commons. Ms Snelgroue then enlisted the support of top businessmen including Dragon’s Den star Duncan Bannatyne and Lastminute.com boss Ian McCaig.

And then she wrote to all the Councils in the UK urging them to take part in the scheme – and Argyll & Bute was the first Scottish Council to respond.

Argyll and Bute’s Workplace Giving Scheme had only been used previously by a handful of its 5,000 strong workforce.  In only a few weeks that figure has risen by over 600% and the one-to-one office promotions of the scheme have only just started. This is a hugely positive response from Council employees.

Judy Orr, Argyll and Bute Council’s Head of Head of Financial and ITC Services, says: ‘We have always known that the people of Argyll and Bute are extremely generous but this massive increase in employee charity giving is an outstanding example of kindness. I am delighted that Council are supporting the Geared for Giving Campaign in this way, benefiting many charities for years to come’.