Children 1st’s ambition is for every child in Scotland to be safe, loved and well with their family. The charity offers emotional, practical, and financial support to help families to put children first and campaigns to uphold the rights of every child.

Through its innovative Dragons Glen entrepreneurial challenge, firms have an opportunity to bring staff together to take on a fundraiser which offers more than just the chance to raise money for a wonderful cause. It also gives a great way to bring teams together, and to develop a whole host of professional skills.

Dragons Glen sees organisations put forward a team (or multiple teams) of five to 10 staff, who are given £500 seed funding from Children 1st and challenged to turn it into at least £5,000 over five months (October–March) by developing a product and business plan, pitching it to a panel of ‘Dragons’ to get them started.

Support will be on hand from the Children 1st team throughout the challenge, but also from an allocated Dragon mentor — one of Scotland’s business leaders.

A training event planned for late September 2023 will ensure teams are pitch-ready before they enter the Glen in October and further virtual events over the subsequent five months give the chance for some cross-sector networking, and to hear about the difference their fundraising makes to children and families in Scotland.

Over the last 10 years, Dragons Glen teams have raised over £500,000 for Children 1st. The record amount raised by an individual team from their £500 seed funding was £31,000.

Products have ranged from cookbooks and calendars, to socks, t-shirts, umbrellas, and accessories for dogs — and every penny raised helps to protect children and families across Scotland from harm and to support them to recover from trauma and abuse. 

Dragons Glen really offers a unique and rewarding opportunity for staff to compete against other teams across Scotland, develop professional and creative skills, build connections and gain a huge sense of achievement. It is an excellent opportunity for colleagues to develop their professional skills and discover new talents, all while raising funds to support vulnerable children and young people across Scotland. A short video on the charity’s website explains more.

Recent winners Capco described Dragons Glen as a great opportunity to diversify their skills and gain experience in areas they don’t usually work in, whilst knowing the money they raised went towards keeping children safe.

Interested in hearing more? Head along and meet with Children 1st at their Dragons Glen Showcase Event, on Tuesday 6th June in Glasgow at the Studio on Hope Street, G2 6AE, between 5pm -7.30pm. There you will have the chance to hear from past participants and senior staff who have overseen the challenge internally, see products created by teams in previous years, and discover more about the impact the challenge has for children and families across Scotland.

To register for the event, you can register online Dragons Glen Showcase 2023 - RSVP | Children 1st or email partnerships@children1st.org.uk.

To find out more about Dragons Glen or the work Children 1st do for Scotland’s children and families, don’t hesitate to reach out to partnerships@children1st.org.uk for a chat with the team.