Workplace giving

The BFF is Elston’s Better Future Fund, a sub-fund of the Elston Giving Foundation. It’s used to deliver Elston’s charitable giving initiatives and is open to contributions from both Elston and external contributors. The Elston Giving Committee is made up of volunteers from the Elston business who administer the BFF and provide guidance to the trustee of Elston Giving Foundation around charity recipients.

The name is a happy coincidence. We actually chose the name Better Future Fund because the Elston vision is A Better Future3. So, the Better Future Fund is a perfect reflection of what we believe as a team. Of course, the people who get involved with workplace giving often become BFFs too. Especially when they go on volunteer days together.

Elston Workplace Giving enables Elston employees to contribute to Elston’s Better Future Fund in a tax effective and efficient way via fortnightly payroll deductions. All contributions are voluntary and confidential.

Charity nominations are open to all Elston team members, and grants within the range of $1000-$10000 are available. All nominations are reviewed by the Elston Giving Committee and preference is given to those charities which are consistent with the following granting guidelines:

• Grassroots organisations in Australia
•  Connected to the communities where Elston operates
•  Registered charity status (DGR Tier 1)
•  Working in diverse areas, e.g. environment, youth, indigenous, women and girls, the arts, etc.
• Creating a better future for all to thrive

To nominate a charity, please complete the nomination form located here

Moving to the Better Future Fund, a sub-fund of the Elston Giving Foundation enables our workplace giving to be more sustainable. It opens the BFF to receive internal (Elston team members and shareholders) and external contributions (fundraising activities, Elston clients). The structure of the Elston Giving Foundation also means that funds can be invested and managed with the aim of building a legacy for future charitable giving.

No. Elston shareholders have kindly offered to dollar match employee contributions into the Better Future Fund. This means that e.g. if staff contributions for the year are $20,000, the total after dollar-matching will be $40,000. This is in effect doubling the impact of your charitable support. Also, because the BFF is a sub-fund in a public ancillary fund, external contributions from clients and fundraising activities can be accepted.

Workplace giving with Elston is different in a couple of important ways. It’s a salary sacrifice, so there are immediate tax advantages. The charities we support are often smaller, low-profile causes that can struggle to be seen and attract the funds they need to continue their work. You get to nominate causes that are close to your heart, and if that nomination is successful, the donation can be significant – much bigger than you could have contributed individually. People also feel more connected to the charities we support. That’s because we often invite them to speak at PD Days. We rub shoulders with the charity workers at volunteer days. And we get direct feedback on how the money is spent. It’s great to see tangible results and to know that we’re making a real difference.

Elston provides up to 1 day per year paid leave to support charities in our communities through volunteer work. Preference is given to teams-based volunteering activities, and working in a group is often fun and rewarding. If you are interested in participating, please speak to your team leader.

We would love you to be involved, but of course, making contributions is completely voluntary. One of the reasons we’ve moved to the Better Future Fund and opened the way to workplace giving is that we believe it’s a more equitable way of supporting Elston’s charitable giving. Previously, contributions were made from a combination of staff profit share allocations and contributions by Elston Shareholders, the former of which only applied to those on the profit share structure. Elston shareholders will continue to dollar match any contributions made into the Better Future Fund, however now everybody has the opportunity to be involved.

Yes! One of the features of the Elston Better Future Fund is it can receive contributions from both internal and external supporters. External contributions can also attract a tax deduction and provide a great avenue for fundraising and external client participation.