Following the roaring success of Burges Salmon’s Got Talent last year, independent UK law firm Burges Salmon has once again taken over the stage at Bristol Beacon to treat a packed audience to an exceptional talent show which has raised around £15,000 in aid of the firm’s charitable theme, Fairer Futures for Young People. The money, raised through ticket sales, donations, auctions and a raffle, will be distributed to a number of charities and community groups across Bristol and Edinburgh to support education, health and wellbeing and social mobility projects and help tackle homelessness and food poverty amongst young people.
A range of performers, including partners, lawyers and business professionals, braved stage fright at the newly renovated Lantern Hall, to entertain the enthusiastic audience to a series of music, singing, magic and stand-up comedy acts. The firm’s choir also sprinkled the festive cheer, carolling some all-time favourites, and the firm’s Senior Partner, Chris Seaton, gave a moving rendition of Frank Sinatra’s My Way as he retires from the business next year.
Fairer Futures for Young People was voted as the firm’s new theme last year and Burges Salmon has already supported a number of organisations including Young Bristol, Edinburgh-based Lasswade High School, the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland and the Children's Book Project in London. Following a firmwide collection, the firm also gifted some 1,600 pre-loved children stories to a range of charities and schools across the community.
Kevin Kennedy, partner and Chair of Burges Salmon’s charity committee, comments: “Responsible Business is part of life at Burges Salmon and our talent show was a huge success and a fantastic display of Burges Salmon’s culture at its best, with our people coming together to put on a truly remarkable event and gathering in mass to support our hugely talented and brave performers with great encouragement. Our collective efforts meant we were able to raise a phenomenal amount to support our charity partners and we’re proud to contribute to the inspiring work they do across our communities to support young people realise their full potential.”
The firm’s new theme follows four years of fundraising so ‘No Child Goes Hungry’, the firm’s previous charitable theme. In that time, Burges Salmon was proud to raise and donate £160,000 to over 30 charities who are all working to tackle the issue of food justice in different ways – whether that is meeting urgent immediate needs of providing healthy and culturally appropriate food or working on food education and other projects that are intended to have a longer-term impact. To find out more about the firm’s Charitable Giving projects and the impact they’ve had, watch the video.
Burges Salmon’s Got Talent also marks a celebration of the firm’s long-term partnership with Bristol Beacon and how the firm advocates for the arts and creative industry, recognising the important role it plays in improving social mobility, diversity and inclusion, and equality of opportunities. For the past five years, Burges Salmon has proudly served as Bristol Beacon’s official legal partner, endorsing its vision to create one of Europe’s best, most accessible, performance and music education venues and the UK’s first carbon neutral concert venue by 2030. Notably, the firm has supported the music charity on its once-in-a-generation transformation and advised on a pro bono basis on the legal aspects critical to Bristol Beacon's operations and redevelopment.
Simon Wales, CEO at Bristol Beacon, comments: “The support received from Burges Salmon meant that we were able to deliver one of the most ambitious arts regeneration projects in the UK by reopening the transformed venue in November 2023. Their support has enabled us to continue to expand our creative learning programmes reaching over 30,000 young people every year, most recently by providing pro bono legal advice following our appointment by Arts Council England to lead the West of England Music Hub in partnership with West of England Music and Arts. The ongoing partnership we have built with Burges Salmon ensures that many more people in our community will benefit from life changing musical experiences.”