Whilst we’re keen to work with all manner of organisations to help them reach their potential, we have also set up the Hitch Fund to help us stick to what excites us most – social innovation.
This fund was created to help ensure Hitch is always investing in social impact work which encourages innovation, regardless of the work we do on a day to day basis. Hitch Marketing commits to spend 5% of our time each year as pro bono consultancy to the Hitch Fund, which is managed by Hitched Communities (limited by guarantee) to design and scale community based social innovation projects from inception in collaboration with donors and community partners. We also annually give a discretionary amount of cash to selected charities of personal importance to staff members. We're early in this journey, but we have a pot of gold, and we're keen to work with commissioners, foundations, trusts, and community organisations to make a big social impact on at least one new project every year. Get a feel for some of that work:
Empowering communities to report alcohol related issues
We’re delivering nationally relevant behavioural insight work in communities to inform communications and service pathway strategies to better raise community concerns linked with alcohol licensed premises.
Keeping families together and children out of care
A national charity that works with children’s services, Safe Families for Children link families in need with local volunteers who can offer them help and support. Stabilising families before they reach a breaking point helps to reduce the number of children who need to go into care.
Hitch’s Gary Wootten was instrumental in setting up Safe Families for Children in the Liverpool city region. This involved recruiting the team, winning new contracts, and leading on strategy and implementation.
Supporting food bank ‘pay-as-you-feel’ service model
Neo is a charitable organisation, based in Merseyside, working to bring communities together to help local people. They have set up a ‘pay-as-you-feel’ food bank, a catering business and community café, matchday refreshments for Tranmere Rovers and assisted with the ‘Feeding Birkenhead’ initiative led by MP Frank Field. Hitch are proud to provide marketing, PR and digital support to help promote this flagship social justice project.
Creating ‘Healthy Conversations’ on Legal Highs
Forum Housing Association offers accommodation for single young people aged 16-25, who are homeless or seeking independence. The Hitch Fund delivered a campaign, as part of the national “Healthy Conversations” Foyer initiative, to educate young people about the risks of legal highs.
We led a co-creation workshop with a group of young people from Forum, guiding them through the print and design process, and developed a number of high-quality flyers for local distribution.
Mobilising youth alcohol advocacy
The Hitch Fund invested in Alcohol Concern’s “It’s The Drink Talking” national programme to empower young people to develop community projects and inspire youth advocacy.
Harnessing Health through whole systems collaborative thinking
Harnessing Health Network is a group of independent consultants from the health system. The network attracts a dynamic mix of senior health consultants who contribute to whole systems thinking innovation. As a founding member, the Hitch Fund has created a website and supported with additional event marketing.
Launching a relationship counselling charity
We designed and delivered a range of marketing and communications assets to help the new charity launch and grow. The Hitch Fund allowed us to amplify the work by giving time free of charge enabling TLC: Talk, Listen, Change to achieve more with their new branding exercise and website redesign than originally possible.
Unlocking potential and worth in youth people
Supporting young people, building hope, unlocking potential and helping them understand their true worth, the Hitch Fund helped Worth Unlimited with their stakeholder celebration event and designed their literature.
Charity support
Every Christmas at Hitch we make a number of financial donations to charities that are of personal importance to Hitch team members. For 2020 the Hitch Fund supported:
- Sean's Place Sean's Place aims is to improve men’s mental health and well-being across Liverpool City Region.
- The Cinnamon Trust The Cinnamon Trust offer fostering support to pets whose owners face a spell in hospital, as well as long term care for pets whose owners have died or moved to residential accommodation. Whilst in care, The Cinnamon Trust work to ensure a line of contact is maintained between the pet's owner and foster carer, including photos, phone calls, and letters.
- Involve North West Involve Northwest’s key objective is to continue to empower and enable local people through access to clear, concise information and guidance through a high-quality service.
- Salford Pupil Referral Units SPRUs provide help and support to children excluded from schools.
- The Martin Gallier Project The Martin Gallier Project exists to prevent suicides, break down stigmas and support families in the North West.
- Wirral Women and Children's Aid The Wirral Women and Children's Aid provide refuge, therapy and outreach for women and children.
Supporting grassroots football
Sponsorship of one of the local children’s football teams, the Bromborough and Eastham Warriors, for a number of seasons. Supporting grassroots football is a great way to encourage children to stay fit and healthy, develop team working skills and have fun.
Local pre-school resources
We have supported a local pre-school with much-needed resources to help the children who attend to achieve their early learning potential.
*this was a change in policy in 2019 where previously a commitment was based on profits alone