Partners, lawyers and staff from Bristol-headquartered national law firm Burges Salmon showed off their talent at a sold-out charity event staged at iconic music venue Bristol Beacon ahead of its official reopening.
Burges Salmon’s Got Talent, which took place in the venue’s newly renovated Lantern Hall, pictured, raised a mammoth £23,000 for the firm’s charitable theme No Child Goes Hungry.
The performers, who were among the first to perform at Bristol Beacon following its £132m transformation, treated the near 300-strong audience in the hall – with 100-plus watching via live stream – to music, singing, dancing and stand-up comedy routines, with the firm’s choir, pictured below, also belting out some iconic tunes.
The £23,300 – achieved through ticket sales, donations, auctions and a raffle – will be distributed to a number of charities across Bristol and Edinburgh working to tackle the issue of food justice for children and young people in different ways, including Feeding Bristol, the Trussell Trust and the Edinburgh Food Project.
Burges Salmon, which employs more than 1,100 people across its offices in Bristol, Edinburgh and London, has been supporting the charities under the theme of No Child Goes Hungry for almost four years.
In that time it has raised funds for more than 30 groups and also worked in partnership with organisations to provide pro-bono advice, volunteering and in-kind support to help them tackle food poverty and support vulnerable children lacking access to food.
The talent show also celebrated Burges Salmon’s long-term partnership with the Bristol Beacon, with the firm supporting the charity on its once-in-a-generation transformation.
Burges Salmon employment team director and head of community engagement Jamie Cameron said: “Our talent show was a roaring success and we’re so proud to have raised such a phenomenal amount for our charity partners in Bristol and Edinburgh and play our part in supporting the all-important work they do in our communities to end food poverty and ensure no child goes hungry.
“Responsible business sits at the heart of our culture and values and is core to our ambition to being a sustainable and inclusive firm to ensure our clients, people and communities flourish.”
Pensions team partner and chair of the firm’s charity committee Alice Honeywill added: “The event was a real display of Burges Salmon’s culture at its best, working together to put on a fantastic event and supporting our hugely talented performers with great encouragement. It was a fabulous and fun evening, all in support of our local communities.”
Bristol Beacon development director Rosa Corbishley said Burges Salmon’s ongoing support meant the venue had been able to deliver on its promise to build one of the best, most accessible performance and music education venues in Europe.
“The partnership we have built together will ensure that many more people in our community will benefit from life changing musical experiences,” she added.
Earlier this month Burges Salmon was named the ‘overall leader’ in the Lamp House Strategy Responsible Business annual report in recognition of way the firm’s overall ESG (environmental, social and governance) strategy has advanced its people, protected the planet and preserved good governance.
