Random Acts of Kindness

For a number of years, BCTG has performed Random Acts of Kindness. Simple actions, just to brighten someone’s day. We set aside funds, and staff teams agree what and how they will deliver the kindness. We don’t use it as a PR exercise, any payback is the reaction we get.

Random-Acts-of-Kindness

This Is an Example of How It Works

Five teams were challenged to each give away £600 in the spirit of just being kind to others at Christmas.

Among the scores of people being helped is a West Bromwich couple whose young son has cancer. One of the teams is giving money to the family to cover the cost of re-decorating their son’s bedroom for Christmas.

Other members of staff hit the streets, offering to pay for people’s shopping, car parking and even their prescriptions in lots of small and random acts of kindness.

One team based in West Bromwich has already filled unwanted handbags full of toiletries and essentials for homeless women in Birmingham and the Black Country, while another team handed envelopes with cash in to nurses to give to cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy at Russell’s Hall Hospital.

Chris Luty, director at BCTG said;
"We know Christmas time is not always the happiest for lots of people for lots of reasons. So, rather than make a large Christmas donation to one charity, which the company has always done in the past, we decided to organise a whole series of small and random acts of kindness. That way we felt we could make a difference to a lot of people over the next few weeks and hopefully put a smile on people’s faces."

“Some of the money we hand out helps smaller charities but it also helps shoppers, hospital visitors and one or two families who just appreciate people being nice to them. There’s no catch, other than the one thing we all taking from this is it really is just as satisfying to give as it is to receive.”

Examples of BCTG’s Random Acts of Kindness

  • Gift bags full of helpful treats handed out to patients on the MacMillan Hospice at Home service in Oldbury
  • Helping Handbags – filling handbags full of essential toiletries for homeless women
  • Offering to pay people’s prescriptions as they visited their local chemist
  • Surprise envelopes with some money in for cancer patients having chemotherapy treatment in hospital.
  • Stopping shoppers in Black Country towns and offering to pay for items of their shopping or car parking.
  • Buying Christmas shoppers their bags for life shopping backs at the check-out
  • Secretly putting envelopes with money in when they take part in a gift-wrap service at West Bromwich Queen’s Square.
  • Buying and donating presents to Santa’s grotto as part of Tipton’s Christmas Festival
  • Buying sensory toys for adults with learning disabilities.
  • Paying for bags for life for shoppers, at Cradley Heath Lidl (£50)
  • Buying £10 food vouchers for shoppers in West Bromwich.
  • Providing the awards for Tipton’s ‘Five Shinning Stars Awards’ (five primary school children) at the Christmas Lights Switch on.
  • Making hampers up for Wednesbury’s Breaking Bread Food Bank
  • Giving £50 each to cafes in Langley and Blackheath to pay for free tea, coffee and toast for customers popping in for a drink.
  • Visiting residential homes for the elderly in Smethwick to drop of Christmas presents.
  • Donating money to Russell’s Hall Hospital children’s Christmas toy appeal in conjunction with Dudley Town FC

And with every random act of kindness BCTG staff are hand out cards, which simply explain ‘it’s nice to be nice, please accept the gift, it is an act of kindness, there’s no catch, it’s a gesture from us to you.'