Christmas gifts that do good

Christmas is meant to be a joyful season but searching for Christmas presents for loved ones can sometimes turn into a stressful, last minute shopping frenzy. However, it doesn’t have to be like that. If you’re still on the hunt for original gift ideas that your loved ones will actually like and use, we’ve got your back.

Check out these brilliant Christmas gift ideas from socially minded companies championing change. Spread the love this Christmas and give someone you care about a gift from a company that cares too.

Gifts that look good

Designs in Mind - the design studio improving mental health

Designs in Mind is a working studio, where adults living with mental health challenges work together on experimental art and design projects. They have an expansive range of bright and boldly designed products including homewares, prints, accessories and stationery.

Birdsong - clothing for women who dress in protest

Birdsong designs clothes for remarkable women that are also made by them. They work with expert women makers who face barriers to employment and pay them London living wage. Their range of womenswear, accessories and gifts are all made to Birdsong’s extremely high standard of design, ethics and sustainability.

Ocean Bottle - reusable water bottles and plastic waste collectors

Not only does using one of Ocean Bottle’s award-winning insulated bottles help you reduce your plastic use but every sale contributes to collecting ocean-bound waste plastic. By June this year they had helped collect 2,784,239kg of plastic.

Gifts that taste good

Breadwinners - artisanal bread supporting refugees

Londoners can now order Breadwinners high quality bread and pastries to their door. Their online shop offers buns, a bread subscription, sourdough kits and gift vouchers. They provide work experience for refugees and young people seeking asylum as well as employability training, social networks and mentoring.

Migrateful - cookery classes taught by migrant chefs

Migrateful runs cookery classes led by expert refugee and migrant chefs who are struggling to integrate and access employment, due to legal and linguistic barriers. Their mission is to empower its chefs on their journey to employment and independence. Migrateful offers a range of in-person, online, group and private classes.

Fat Macy’s - catering and food gifts supporting people into homes

Fat Macy’s runs multiple food businesses including a restaurant and bespoke catering. They run programmes for people in temporary accommodation to give them skills and help them earn a deposit to move into a home. You can hire them for private catering or shop their range of food and drinks gifts on their website.

Nemi Teas - specialist teas empowering refugees

Nemi Teas is a specialist London-based tea company that offers a variety of tea blends both as loose-tea and teabags and a Chai Syrup. They also provide employment to refugees to give them local work experience and job readiness skills to enter the UK workforce and help them integrate into broader society. 

Toast Ale - beer creating systemic change to fix the food system

By using surplus bread to replace barley, Toast Ale uses less land, water and energy, and produces less carbon emissions. They create additional impact with the sale of their range of craft beers by giving all profits to charity.

See the full list of positive impact Christmas gifts at Escape the City