About us

Businesses for Islington Giving Alliance (BIG Alliance) connects businesses with the community organisations and schools that make Islington what it is.

We were set up in 2012 by Islington Giving, Macquarie Group and the East London Business Alliance (ELBA). Together, they combined Islington Giving’s deep knowledge of the borough with ELBA’s long experience of corporate community investment. The result is a trusted way for businesses to do real good locally.

Our strategy is shaped with local partners including Islington Council and the City of London Corporation, so our work responds to the borough’s most pressing needs.

What we do today

Islington is home to thriving businesses and to some of the deepest inequality in London. We bring the two together. Employees from our business partners share their time and skills through four pillars of volunteering:

  • Challenge. Roll up your sleeves to transform Islington’s places and spaces. Team Challenges, Adopt an Adventure Playground and our festive Toy Appeal.
  • Empower. Share your professional skills to strengthen local charities. CoRe, BoardMatch, Leaders in Partnership and Capacity Support workshops.
  • Inspire. Help young people in Islington discover their potential. Mentoring Works, Career Insight Visits, Mock Interviews and Enterprise Days.
  • Engage. Spend time with residents and build real connections. Social Hubs, Time to Talk, Conversational English and Digital Skills.

Since 2012, our partners have given more than 100,000 volunteer hours to our local organisations.

We make corporate community investment easy, effective and rewarding, for the businesses who take part and for the community they serve.

Read why Islington matters Become a business partner