Costa Foundation

Today on #DayOfTheGirl we stand with our partners Plan International UK to make sure every girl can have an education. Around the world, 129 million girls are out of school and being denied the chance to learn. We aim to change this through our partnership together, by working collaboratively to #changeachildslifestory in coffee growing communities by offering access to safe and quality education. Together, let’s clear the way for girls, so that every girl can finish school. To see more information about how Plan International UK are marking this important day, head to https://bit.ly/47X4IpZ #AgainstAllOdds, girls are determined to learn.

That's a wrap on two weeks of Costa Coffee festive roadshows, seeing our team travel up and down the UK to meet everyone. We've spoken to many inspiring team members who have shown so much love and support for our Foundation. It was great to hear stories of challenges that teams and individuals have taken on so far, fundraising events they have running in stores and ideas for what they hope to do next! We are looking forward to seeing what these amazing teams all have in store next, in their collective efforts to help change a child's life story. #changeachildslifestory

Last weekend, this incredible team of 25 people cycled 175 miles over two days and have raised a staggering amount of money towards our Foundation. We are beyond grateful for the effort of everyone involved, those on the bikes and behind the scenes, who year on year make this event happen. Thank you all for your continued commitment to supporting education in coffee growing communities. Together, we are able to improve the life chances of so many children and young people across the globe ✨ #changeachildslifestory

Wow, what a day we have had on International Coffee Day 2024! We have seen our 'build a school' campaign with Costa Coffee go live in UK stores and have attended the second day of their festive roadshows in London. We want to take a moment to say a big thank you to all of our supporters - past, present and brand new. As always, we have been blown away by the passion that Costa teams have for our Foundation and the efforts they go to to fundraise (not forgetting their wonderful loyal customers who get involved with so many different things when visiting stores too). We have had some great conversations with teams over the past two days and are looking forward to visiting some stores in the coming months to see them in action! Alongside raising incredibly important funds today via the 'build a school' campaign, we hope that we have also inspired even more people to get involved in changing the life stories of children and young people in coffee growing communities. We believe that all children deserve the right to education, including those living in rural communities around the world such as coffee growing families. Together, we can work towards making access to education a reality for all.

Plan International UK is another one of our many incredible partners, who work with us to ensure that education is accessible to children and young people within coffee growing communities across the world 🌎 Since 2015, we have invested 1 million pounds to support education in Honduras, Guatemala and Nicaragua with the help of Plan International UK, changing the life stories of 5,700 children so far

Happy International Coffee day! We are excited to be supported today by Costa Coffee who are donating 30p from selected drinks purchased in UK stores towards our Foundation To find out more about our work head to www.costafoundation.com ❤️☕🏫

Proud to partner with PEAS (Promoting Equality in African Schools) on education projects in rural sub-Saharan Africa

Great day with our fantastic partners Pioneers sharing ideas about community initiatives in Costa and the work of our Costa Foundation

Last month our Executive Director joined Jeffrey Young on the World Coffee Portal 5th Wave podcast to discuss our mission to provide access to safe and quality education in coffee growing communities across the globe. Kate O'Brien shared insight into the projects that we have achieved with our incredible partners so far, stories of the children and young people within those schools and the impact that access to education has had on their lives. Within this conversation Kate also discusses how Costa Coffee teams support the Foundation through their creative fundraising and the challenges around supporting coffee growing communities, with an ever growing need for funds to support education in the hope of reducing the impact that issues such as the current climate crisis and migration has on these communities.

We are excited to share our most recently completed funded project in Peru! Thanks to the dedicated fundraising of Costa Coffee teams, we have been able to fund a brand-new school build in a local coffee growing community within Peru, offering safe and quality education at both primary and secondary levels. Before this project, buildings were made of mud brick with poor lighting and ventilation, and furniture was unsuitable for use. There was a risk of imminent collapse of buildings should an earthquake occur, and the school was issued a demolition order of the government, without any budget for replacement. Our long-standing partners Volcafe, and the wonderfully creative architectural NGO Semillas who specialise in participatory approaches to design, have ensured that the local community have been at the heart of the project throughout, from initial appraisal through to the project’s conclusion. With their care and attention to detail they have created an incredibly beautiful school, using locally sourced and recycled materials, that can be enjoyed by the community for many years to come. All school buildings are now ones that are fit for purpose, and there is an overall improved quality of education for all students ensuring light, hygienic and safe spaces throughout. The local community has recently celebrated with a grand opening of the school. The ceremony began with warm words of welcome from the president of the parents' association, followed by the raising of the flag and the singing of the national anthem, as is tradition in Peruvian schools. Thank you to everyone who has spent their time and energy in committing to raising awareness, fundraising and donating towards the Costa Foundation's mission. With your continued efforts, we have been able to provide even more children and young people with safer and higher quality education. Something that every child deserves. 📸 Semillas