Kelvin Plomer, Senior Director of Player Experience & Head of Jagex Charitable Giving, writes:
For Jagex, supporting charities is far more than simply the fundraising, important as that is – it’s also about working with our charity partners to amplify their messages of support and education to our communities, and contributing our skills and time to enable them to be even more effective in the essential work they do.
With the main focus on mental health, we have worked to provide an extended platform to ensure that our player communities know where and how to get support during the real struggles with isolation and daily life, and our help and funds have enabled our charity partners to continue to provide essential support when their demand increased due to the pandemic.
Alongside, we see the greater importance of elevating the focus on diversity and inclusion, and are keen to play a proactive part in highlighting and reducing disadvantage and discrimination. Often, these are linked to wellbeing and opportunity – something that we at Jagex place at the forefront of our aims.
We are happy to announce that Jagex will continue our support of mental health with CPSL Mind and Rise Above the Disorder, and also, for the next two years, we will partner with Blueprint for All (formerly the Stephen Lawrence Charitable Trust) to promote diversity and inclusion.
Since 2017, I have been proud to coordinate fundraising and support from all areas of Jagex, where we have raised more than £1million for our charity partners.
This is a major passion project, and something we are in for the long haul. We have taken our corporate social responsibility seriously, before the pandemic, and will continue to do so as we know, with focus, hard work and the incredible support of our players, we can, and do, make a difference.
As a game studio, we have a huge audience in our games and on social media, as well as a host of skills, which we will continue to apply to amplifying and supporting real issues we know we all face in our lives. For us, this is an ongoing journey that we are committed to, and we welcome the strong part Jagex, and the Games industry in general, can provide to essentially important charitable work.
Words from our partners
We are delighted to be continuing our incredible partnership with Jagex. The organisation and player community have been so supportive of our work. Now more than ever, the need to support mental health projects is so important and we are greatly looking forward to continuing working with Jagex to raise awareness, to encourage people to look after their mental health and support those around them to do the same. Aly Anderson CEO , CPSL Mind
Jagex Is RAD! JAGEX has allowed us to provide mental health care to thousands of people across the globe. The fundraising JAGEX and the Runescape communities have done for RAD has been life changing for the people who daily receive mental health care with us. Imagine going so long without mental health care because of the cost, then being greeted with the news that JAGEX, the makers of a game you've played all your life, have donated your mental health care… so rad. Jason Docton, Founder, Rise Above the Disorder
Blueprint for All are grateful to have a flourishing relationship with Jagex, who are dedicated to supporting our work empowering individuals and communities across the UK, to tackle disadvantage and discrimination. Jagex have been supporting Blueprint for All since 2020, donating an incredible £60,000 to support our essential work, whilst fundraising amongst their internal Diversity group, to raise a further £6000. Raising the bar once again, 2021 will see Jagex commit to an £80,0000 fundraising and awareness campaign, utilising their industry-leading living games to draw in consumers to share in our vision of levelling the playing field in the UK. Ewan Tuohy, Senior Corporate Relationship Manager, Blueprint for All