Businesses, charities and community groups
The Big Lunch and The Big Help Out are teaming up on 5-8 June for one big do – a weekend of friendship, food, fun and action. Everyone’s invited!
Whether you’re a community group, charity, small start-up or a large corporation, getting involved in the big do can have lasting benefits for you, your colleagues, volunteers, workplace culture and brand.
For charities and community groups
How to get volunteers through the door
How to host a Big Lunch at work
You can host your own Big Lunch whenever and wherever you like!…
Fundraising ideas
Easy and achievable fundraising ideas for your Big Lunch (or other event!).
How we work with businesses
Find a partnership which supports your local community and has sustainability at…
What you do is up to you
There are lots of ways to get involved.
- Organise a do for your employees to bring people from different departments together and enjoy some food.
- Run a volunteering taster day to attract new volunteers and showcase the types of role available in your charity, community group or organisations. Getting people in through the door to help with something simple and easy is often the start of something more.
- Get your organisation involved in lending a hand locally – whether that’s a litter pick, sprucing up a local community centre or supporting your food bank. If you offer volunteering days, this a great way to encourage employees to do some good for their local community.
- Host a do to say thank you to existing volunteers. It’s a perfect event to hold as part of Volunteers’ Week (1-7 June 2026) as part of the Month of Community.
Why hold a do?
1) Helps create a happier, more productive workforce
Holding a do is a fun, informal way to help colleagues get to know one another beyond work tasks and emails. A shared meal or task breaks down barriers, supports teamwork, helps increase morale and encourage collaboration. A happy team is a productive one!
Taking time to connect can boost wellbeing, reduce stress, and improve focus – making us more effective at our jobs in the long run.
2) Helps attract new volunteers
Opening the door to potential new volunteers can help people to understand what roles they may be able to do for your charity.
If you make volunteering easy and accessible (for example, with a taster day of the sorts of roles you have available), it opens the door for more in the future.
3) Supports your Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) goals
Taking part in and supporting The Big Lunch and The Big Help Out encourages social responsibility, community engagement and workplace wellness.
What’s more, organisations and businesses can also fundraise for the Eden Project – showing your commitment to sustainability and positive social impact.
4) Helps reduce loneliness and isolation
Loneliness doesn’t just affect individuals; it has a real impact on the workplace, especially with more people working remotely. Research has shown that workplace loneliness leads to lower productivity, increased absenteeism, and higher staff turnover.
Holding a do can help by create opportunities for employees to form meaningful connections – whether they’ve joined with others to share a meal or lend a hand (or both!). This helps reduce feelings of isolation and build a stronger sense of belonging at work.
5) A chance to connect with other organisations
Invite neighbouring businesses, clients, or partners to join your do and use it as a chance to network in a relaxed setting. It could help open doors to new collaborations and opportunities, as you never know where conversations might take you!
6) A way to say thank you
A simple ‘thank you’ goes a long way.
Hosting a do is a great way to show appreciation volunteers, employees, clients and suppliers for their hard work and support.
7) Encourage dwell time
Hosting a do can help encourage visitors at your business or charity to stay longer.
You could make an afternoon or day of your event, offering different activities and ways to engage those that take part. If you’re not customer facing, why not invite people in for a behind the scenes tour?
Aim to make it enjoyable and fun, for everyone!
8) Helps build brand reputation
A workplace that supports initiatives like The Big Lunch and The Big Help Out shows that it values its employees and their wellbeing.
When businesses encourage participation – whether through flexible lunch breaks, volunteer days, or even match-funding employee-led fundraising – it strengthens their brand sentiment – presenting itself as a positive, people-focused organisation.
“Our team love getting together and taking part, and getting to know the people working at the businesses around us better. It always gives our team a chance to bond with people they might not work with all the time and space to relax.”
L. Wilson, We are Vista
Charities and community groups
Whether or not you’ve taken part in The Big Help Out previously, the big do is a great place to start to get people in your local community lending a hand, and having fun.
We’ll be running events on how you can take part and use our campaign to bring new volunteers through the door – watch this space!
Over £100m has been raised for good causes through Big Lunches since 2015
Where next?
The big do
The Big Lunch and The Big Help Out are teaming up!
Plan your do
Everything you need to make your do a reality!
About the Eden Project
We demonstrate and inspire positive action for the planet.
Our research
We undertake research to understand what’s happening in our communities, to highlight…