Giving back: A year in review

In the last financial year, our commitment to giving back has remained a focal point; from supporting local communities to championing charitable causes, and empowering future generations through workplace opportunities, we’ve dedicated a significant amount of time, resources, and above all, passion, to making a difference. 

Our support for charities and communities has shown the power of our people, and we’re proud to have donated over £550,000 in 2024/25. This support has taken shape in a variety of ways, from payroll giving and corporate partnerships, to STEM projects, individual charitable activity and our internal financial grant scheme – the Community Fund. 

We were delighted to be awarded the Platinum accreditation mark from the Charities Aid Foundation (CAF), which our payroll giving scheme (Give As You Earn) is part of. The accreditation is a government-backed quality mark which is assessed according to an organisation’s size, number of donors, promotional activity and facilitation of on-site events. 

Our links with corporate charity partners Aerobility and the Jon Egging Trust (JET) have grown even stronger. We have supported them through mentoring, career workshops, skills-sharing, financial contributions, and fundraising events. 

We began our re-launch of a site-based charity initiative, inviting colleagues from all NATS sites to nominate a local charity to pledge commitment to for two to three-year period. Our three largest centres have embarked on this already, with our international offices, airports and other sites coming on board in the 2025/26 financial year. 

The Community Fund continued to grow as well. The fund welcomes applications from NATS employees who are either personally involved with charities and community groups outside of work, or who are fundraising for charity. During the past financial year, we approved 138 requests for 114 causes, awarding £120,000. 

We’ve also seen a huge amount of fundraising and collections taking place across the offices, with food bank collections and toy appeals, animal shelter drop-offs, head shaving and bake sales. 

Our colleagues are absolutely fantastic at helping others and giving back, and everyone should be very proud of the direct impact these efforts have had in their local communities and with the charities we have worked with.