Pennies celebrates 15 years & GBP £75 million raised for UK charities

Pennies has commemorated its 15th anniversary by highlighting a milestone of over GBP £75 million raised through micro-donations, benefitting more than 1,100 UK charities. The organisation, which serves as a digital charity box at points of sale, marked the achievement alongside its partners from retail, hospitality, payments, and technology sectors.

Donation milestone

Pennies reported that it has facilitated more than 300 million individual micro-donations since it began. These contributions have provided consistent support to a wide spectrum of charities across the country. The organisation collaborates with merchants and payment providers to make small charitable contributions available at digital checkout points, both in-store and online.

Award recipients

The 2025 Pennies Awards recognised companies and individuals who have embedded and promoted micro-donations within their operations. Iceland Foods received the Merchant Impact Award for rolling out micro-donations across all its UK stores with strong customer engagement. Acrelec UK was distinguished with the Technology Impact Award for its work deploying Pennies' donation solution on kiosks, which has resulted in a tenfold increase in donations. B&Q claimed the Partnership Breakthrough Award after its successful launch led to accelerated donation growth. Verifone was acknowledged with the Outstanding Achievement Award for providing the first Android solution supporting Pennies, sustaining major deployments across multiple retailers.

The Unsung Hero Awards honoured Andrew Williamson (Gatwick), Atena Cozens (Screwfix), Martyn Kendrick-Bott (Verifone), and three members of Worldpay's Marketing Team, for their behind-the-scenes efforts aiding the micro-donation initiative.

Sector perspectives

A panel discussion featured executives from Domino's, B&Q, and Debenhams Group. The conversation addressed consumer confidence, brand differentiation strategies, and the broader social responsibilities of businesses.

"The reality is that the Pennies' mission is still as live in Domino's today as it was back then 15 years ago. It enables us to do the things that really matter to us. It enables us to support the charities that mean a huge amount [to us], like Teenage Cancer Trust," said Sarah Barron, Chief Marketing Officer, Domino's.

Paddy Earnshaw, Retail, Property & Technology Director at B&Q, highlighted the accessibility and reach of Pennies' micro-donation option among staff.

"[Pennies] is the most ubiquitous and accessible way to make a difference to people in the UK and for us that makes a very, very compelling story for 25,00 colleagues. That would be the big difference for Pennies for me," said Earnshaw.

Sophie Rycroft, Group ESG, Sourcing & Quality Director at Debenhams Group, noted the internal impact of Pennies' initiatives.

"We didn't realise the impact [Pennies] would have socially across our shareholders, our senior leadership team, our staff. They're so proud to talk about it as colleagues, and that's amazing because we're ticking every box - we're doing an amazing thing for these charities," said Rycroft.

Consumer giving trends

Early findings were presented from Pennies' latest nationwide survey conducted by Sapio Research, with a full report due in December. Insights indicate a shift in preferred donation methods as society becomes increasingly cashless. Alison Hutchinson CBE, Chief Executive Officer of Pennies, commented on the evolving landscape for charitable giving.

"When we conducted our research just last month, it said, still, the most preferred way to give is little and often, and believe it or not, the top preferred way of giving is still dropping coins in a charity box. The problem is no one can do it. Rounding up at checkout, doing digital micro-donations, for the second year is now the third preferred way of giving, so we hope that that movement of behaviour from cash to digital is well on its way. "As we celebrate 15 years and £75 million, I looked forward and thought: what would the next 15 years look like? What if together we could help it grow by 10% every year? [In] 15 years' time, 2040, together we'd raise half a billion pounds' worth of money for the UK charity sector. I'd just like to invite you to join my dream and see if it would be possible. Like everything at Pennies, it's a choice - it's your choice if you want to join this movement. I just hope the answer is 'yes'," said Hutchinson.