OUR NOMINATED CHARITY - Charlie's Promise
Charlie's Promise is dedicated to helping the fight against the rising issue of knife crime in Surrey and across the UK.
"Charlie was our 17-year-old son, brother, grandson, nephew, cousin and friend. He was fun-loving, kind, caring, loyal, funny and cheeky with the most ridiculously silly sense of humour."
On Saturday 22nd July 2023, Charlie went to a house party in a small village in West Sussex and never returned home. He was fatally stabbed 4 times in the early hours of Sunday 23rd July and died of his injuries in hospital 2 days later on Tuesday 25th July 2023.
Whilst Charlie was on life support, his Dad Martin made the most important promise of his life. He promised Charlie he would do everything he can to raise awareness of knife crime and the immeasurable damage it causes to the victim and their family and friends.
If it can happen to Charlie, a young lad who didn’t like arguments and avoided trouble – he preferred silly dancing and making people laugh – it can happen to anyone. As he laid fighting for his life, Charlie’s Promise was born.
"We are dedicated to helping the fight against knife crime by raising awareness of the dangers and impacts of both carrying and using a knife. Through education and mentoring we seek to empower young people to make the right choices and decisions in life to help keep themselves and others safe. No parent should suffer the loss of a child. The pain of losing a child to crime is like no other. We want to work with professional bodies to help the family and friends of a child lost through crime and provide them with full support – emotional and practical to help them navigate their way through their grief and inevitable trauma."
How can YOU help?
Each year we select a charity to partner with, giving colleagues, sponsors, entrants and judges an opportunity to get involved and raise funds for a cause we believe in. For 2024, we're proud to support Charlie's Promise, an incredible charity dedicated to fighting the rising issue of knife crime across the UK.
To help raise funds, you can make a donation in advance of the awards evening, or on the night, using the DONATE HERE button on the right.
We’ll also be hosting a silent auction at the ceremony offering a host of one-off items and experiences to bid on with all proceeds* going directly to the charity to help support their vital cause. We encourage everyone to dig deep and show their support - your generosity, no matter the size, can really make a difference and help this charity to make good on their promise to Charlie.
Not going to be there on the night? Do get in touch and we'll be happy to share the auction lots with you directly and you'll be able to place a bid.
*Over and above the reserve price