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Fairfax contributed in excess of $6 million in cash and kind to a range of charitable and community causes during the year. These contributions help Fairfax form connections in communities in which its mastheads, radio stations and brands operate in. 

For example, the Fairfax Radio Network (FRN) supports communities its radio stations broadcast to. FRN does so by becoming involved in a range of community-based activities, sponsorships, community service announcements and through the participation by our staff in community events. 

FRN stations also assisted hundreds of non-profit organisations by providing community service announcement airtime. 

In addition, FRN’s national content distribution company, Fairfax Radio Syndication, supplied commercial distribution and campaign monitoring for a number of charities free of charge. 

In New Zealand, Fairfax sponsors several nation-wide causes as well as running its own successful charities. Each year, via the Ports of Auckland Round the Bays, it donates about NZD$110,000 to a range of charities involved in the well-being and education of children. The Fairfax First Books program puts four picture books a year into the hands of every child at more than 80 kindergartens across New Zealand to foster a love of reading and build early literacy skills. 

In 2012, Fairfax’s New Zealand division launched Creative Spirit (creativespirit.org.nz), an employment program designed to boost employment of people with disabilities, starting with businesses in the creative communication space. And Fairfax has started in its own Auckland office by employing two administration staff who job-share 30 hours a week and who, since joining the Company in March 2012, have become valued team members. Since Fairfax launched Creative Spirit, several advertising and media agencies have signed on and are employing people with disabilities as part of the program. 

## Fairfax workplace giving Program – More than words 

Fairfax’s Australian businesses participate in a workplace giving program, More Than Words, which started in 2005. The program encourages and enables employees to donate part of their pre-tax salary to a range of nominated charities. Through the program, more than $739,000 has been donated since 2005. 

## literacy programs 

One area in which Fairfax believes its news outlets are particularly well-placed to make a difference is literacy. Last year, over the course of 24 weeks, The Sunday Age and The Sun-Herald campaigned strongly on the importance of reading by challenging students around Victoria and NSW to read 12 books in six months. The challenge, known as The Premier’s Reading Challenge, is a team effort at home, in school and through the masthead. 

The Fairfax First Books program is improving early childhood literacy in New Zealand. 

## Boots For Kids 

Young people feature prominently in Fairfax’s scope of charitable support. A recent initiative started with a casual conversation between The Age football writer Michael Gleeson and former Collingwood and All-Australian player Leon Davis about indigenous children who had never owned a pair of footy boots but loved the game passionately. Known as Boots for Kids, the program encourages families in Victoria to donate their children’s used footy boots for use in remote indigenous communities in the Northern Territory and Western Australia where kids play barefoot. 

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