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A Look Back on our Charity Initiatives – January to April 2023

At the start of this year, Spike selected Dorset Mind as its Charity of the Year for 2023. 

 

Based in Bournemouth, Dorset Mind educates, challenges mental health stigma and inequality; and encourages recovery by empowering people to develop resilience. Their 1-2-1 and group support includes befriending, counselling, groups, and mentoring for adults and young people. Their training team delivers educational wellbeing for workplaces including the official Mental Health First Aid (MHFA). They also have numerous volunteering opportunities across the charity. 

 

Connecting communities and bringing people together is at the heart of what we do here at Spike. This year, as a company, we committed to taking part in a number of fundraising events and volunteering initiatives to enable Dorset Mind to continue to raise awareness and provide support for mental health in our communities, whilst at the same time organising a variety of activities aimed towards keeping our staff mentally healthy. 

 

Now, four months later, we’re proud to reflect back on our charity initiatives which have not only brought us a huge sense of accomplishment but also closer as a company, whilst growing our relationship with our neighbours and friends at Dorset Mind.

Beach Clean Up – March 2023

Our beach clean-up was our first organised charity activity, and many of our staff volunteered their time to pick up litter on Bournemouth beach. We followed Dorset Mind’s ‘5 Ways to Wellbeing‘ framework, developed by the New Economics Foundation, which addresses core elements such as connection, staying active, taking notice of our surroundings, trying something new, and giving back. 

 

There are many wellbeing benefits to staff beach clean ups, including enabling staff to give back to their local community, building connections with one another whilst simultaneously enjoying the outdoors, and staying active. It was a morning that was enjoyed by all, and our staff returned to the office with the feeling of accomplishment and having had a great opportunity to spend time with the wider team.

Bournemouth Bay Run – April 2023

The Bournemouth Bay Run 2023 was our first fundraising initiative, and five members of the team took on the challenge! This year, #TeamSpike consisted of Nick, Vicky, and Josh tackling the half marathon, whilst Jonny took on the 10km route, and Sriya the 5km route. Each runner committed themselves to weeks of arduous training, never giving up despite injuries, illnesses, and exhaustion.

Donning neon orange, inspired by the Bournemouth Bay Run’s 40th anniversary 80’s theme, the team all beat their personal targets and raised a considerable amount of money for Dorset Mind. Our office was proud to support and cheer on our team in orange as they crossed the finishing line! We even caught our team in the Bournemouth Echo!

We were initially hoping to raise £500, but through the generosity and kindness of our community, friends, and family, we exceeded our target and raised over £2,500! What’s more, our fundraising page was named one of the most successful JustGiving pages of the month, a huge achievement as our first official fundraising initiative! 

 

Thank you so much to everyone who supported and donated to our fundraiser! Your generosity will be going towards saving the lives of children and adults suffering from mental health in our local communities, ensuring they receive the support and guidance they need from Dorset Mind.

What Have We Planned for Q2?

After the success of our first quarter initiatives, we’re excited to bring the same energy and focus into Q2, with Team Spike taking on the Dragon Boat Race at the Sherbourne Castle Country Fair on the 29th May 2023, as well as our second beach clean-up with the support of Dorset Mind and local volunteers on the 5th June for World Environment Day!

 

Alongside this, we’re excited to be partnering up with Dorset Mind to write monthly blogs and content directed at helping those in the real estate sector to support their staff and residents, relating to key dates such as Mental Health Awareness Week focusing on anxiety, World Meditation Day, Men’s Health Week and more! 

 

You can learn more about Dorset Mind and find ways to support the work they are doing here.