At Edinburgh Airport we realise a sustainable future is for the Greater Good. Working towards this Greater Good will ensure we are caring for our planet, for our friends and family, and for the communities that support us.
We are committed to help support change in our local communities – change that will serve future generations and improve lives in the present.
As part of this commitment, we want to be a Trusted Neighbour. A neighbour that collaborates with and supports our local communities. A neighbour that shares its business success with those who need and deserve it. A neighbour that invests resources in programmes and projects that benefit the many.
One of the ways we do this is through our award-winning Charity Partnership. Every two years we select a different charity to help raise funds and awareness for their cause. By focusing on one charity over a two-year period we hope to maximise the impact we make, and enhance the level of collaboration we can achieve.
The initiative has been running since 2012, providing financial support and increased awareness to several charities. It has also brought a range of benefits to our business by engaging staff in a collective effort for the benefit of our wider community. In 2022 the two-year model was adopted to generate even greater impact for our Charity Partner.
Applications for 2024/2025 are now open - find out more below.
Please ensure you read the criteria above before applying as any applications which do not meet this will not be considered. You can access the application form below.
Edinburgh Airport has been in partnership with The Larder since the start of 2022.
The Larder is based in West Lothian and works to provide training for young people around issues such as employability, health, wellbeing and life skills, as well as learning how to cook and using food as a way to promote social change.
The social enterprise provides direct work experience for young people within its cafes, which also provide nutritious and affordable food for people within local communities.
The Larder was one of more than 50 charities and organisations that applied to become the airport’s charity partner in 2022, eventually coming out on top of a staff vote. The criteria for 2022 was changed to align with the airport’s Greater Good sustainability strategy and partner with a group supporting one or more of the key pillars in the strategy:
Zero Carbon – charities who are working to mitigate and reduce the impacts of climate change
Enhancing Scotland – charities playing their part in managing environmental impacts such as water consumption, waste generation and improved re-use and recycling
Scotland’s Best Business – charities supporting people into employment or providing community mental and physical health and wellbeing initiatives
Trusted Neighbour – charities carrying out essential and vital work in our local communities
We pride ourselves on the success of our past partnerships and since they have begun we’ve raised more than £600,000 for a number of amazing charities.
Our partnerships are also award winning! In 2018 our partnership with Scotland's Charity Air Ambulance (SCAA) won the ‘Best Partner Relationship’ award from the Institute of Fundraising and we were shortlisted for the ‘Inspiring Partnership Award’ at the Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce Business Awards 2019.
Due to the impact of Covid-19, we extended our partnership with our 2020 Charity of the Year, SAMH, for a further year to the end of 2021.
2020 / 21 – Scottish Association for Mental Health (SAMH)
2019 – The Yard
2018 - Scotland’s Charity Air Ambulance (SCAA)
2017 - Children 1st
2016 - Guide Dogs Scotland
2015 - Erskine
We work with our charity partner to help create a calendar of events and activities for our staff to get involved in.
From skydiving and abseiling; to running and cycling; to baking and quizzing – our people and teams also get their heads together to come up with innovative and creative ways to raise money. On campus our foreign coin collection is reserved solely for our charity partner, and we have many other perks and gifts in kind that are donated throughout the partnership.
We don’t only raise funds; we raise awareness of our charity partners too. Helping to put them in the spotlight across our campus, the city, in the media, and online.
This year we want our partnership to be even deeper, more bespoke, and more meaningful than ever. We will be looking for more ways to mutually share skills and expertise and want our charity partner to really be involved in engaging our EDI family. We also offer all our staff two days of volunteering leave per year, so are hoping our charity partner can provide meaningful opportunities for staff to get mucked in and making a difference.
