Giving Back

At Hello Treacle, we are passionate about giving back but, like everything involving money, fundraising is political and this presents challenges with giving back as a politically minded business. I’ve read the contents of this page back dozens of times and can’t help feeling that it sounds a bit bitter and I guess that’s because our direction of travel feels a little less from a position of choice. Don’t change the goal, change the plan – right? So, as someone who’s determined to act with integrity, here’s how we’re looking at charitable giving, with all our feels…

The political bit…

The politics of fundraising are complex – the policies created and enforced by our Government create the ever increasing load and demand for charitable support, yet their often tokenistic or PR friendly donations are substantial enough to prevent smaller charities from taking a political stance for fear of having those donations removed.

To us it feels unfair that, for the most part, charities are non-partisan and non-religious but are more comfortable publicly accepting funds from a proselytising church or other religious organisation, than a politically active business with reach, scope and skills to raise awareness and contribute more than just money for their cause.

Despite numerous attempts, we’re finding it difficult to build the kinds of charitable relationships and partnerships we would like. Our personal values and beliefs and the nature and content of Hello Treacle products aside, it’s been plainly explained to me by several charities that political affiliations, particularly in opposition with the current Government, are to be avoided.

So, we’re changing our plan.

Introducing the Hello Treacle Charity Pot:

Chances are that you buy products from our political collection because you’re a good human who doesn’t like what the right-wing leaderships of the world are doing. Perhaps you like knowing that when you buy something, you’re supporting an ethical business and would like the happy feels of knowing some of your cash is going to support good causes.

So, we have created the Hello Treacle Charity Pot. We will add to it with each retail purchase from the Playfully Political collection and donate:

• 10p from the sale of each 38mm political button badge
• 10p from the sale of each 25mm political needle minder
• £1 from the sale of each political cross stitch or embroidery kit

 
You can find the products contributing to the Charity Pot by filtering by Charity Pot in the product search.

Wholesale retailers which purchase items from this range are also contributing to the Charity pot at a rate of:

• 5p for each 38mm political button badge
• 5p for each 25mm political needle minder
• 50p for each political cross stitch or embroidery kit

We will also select other key products at various times and note on the website that proceeds from the sale of those items will also go into the Charity Pot – it could be something that’s doing particularly well, we may have had a bargain price getting stock in, or there might be a worthy and timely cause we want to support.

Tips you leave at checkout go straight into the Charity Pot, too. Every little counts and we'll make sure not a penny is missed.

At the end of each financial year we will review the Charity Pot and work out where the cash is going – then we will share with you here and on social media how much has gone where and why.

Causes and social justice issues on our radar for 2022 include, but are not limited to:

• Refugee and asylum seeker support
• Racial equality and equity
• PRIDE, gender diversity and transgender rights
• Food poverty
• Domestic abuse.

Visit our Causes We’ve Supported page for information about some of the work we’ve done so far.

Thank you for taking the time to read this! If you’ve any questions, or would like to nominate a cause for us to consider supporting, please contact us using our webform or email contact@hellotreaclestore.com.