Lions Charitable Trust Renews Partnership with My Name'5 Doddie Foundation

27 April 2022

The British & Irish Lions Charitable Trust has renewed four existing charity partnerships, helping rugby-based charities to raise much-needed funds and awareness over the coming 12 months.

The decision was taken to extend the partnerships in acknowledgement of the impact the COVID-19 pandemic had on their fundraising activities. The following charities will work in partnership with the Trust over the coming year:

· Matt Hampson Foundation

· My Name’5 Doddie Foundation

· The Atlas Foundation

· Wooden Spoon

The Trust wishes to give each charity the opportunity to utilise the full benefits of the partnerships, which was not entirely possible in 2021 due to COVID-19 lockdowns. The charities will benefit from promotional support during the partnership including using the Lions digital platforms to generate awareness, as well as access to Lions Tour memorabilia for fundraising.

“It’s with great privilege I can announce we are renewing our four charity partnerships for a second year,” said Gavin Hastings, Chairman of Trustees for The British & Irish Lions Charitable Trust. “Each charity partner has rugby at the core of what it does, and so we wanted the four charities to reap the full benefits of the partnership. We look forward to working closely with each charity again this year and supporting them in their mission to raise much-needed funds for their charitable causes.”

Jill Douglas, CEO of My Name’5 Doddie Foundation, said: “We’re delighted that our charitable partnership with The British & Irish Lions Trust has been renewed and we have a busy calendar of activities planned accordingly.

"My Name’5 Doddie Foundation has benefitted significantly from this relationship, allowing us to invest more funds into targeted research to help to find a cure for Motor Neuron Disease (MND) and support patients living with the disease. The relationship has meant a huge amount to Doddie too, who holds his time with The British & Irish Lions as one of the highlights of his career.”

The Lions Charitable Trust exists to connect with, nurture and support all Lions players in need, alongside furthering the spirit, values and ethos of the Lions through rugby clubs and communities across England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

For more information visit lionsrugby.com/lions-trust