Variety Club to launch new website as part of rebrand

The Variety Club is rebranding itself as Variety, the Children's Charity - and a new website is in the pipeline as well.

Written by Isabel Griffith

The Variety Club has announced it is to rebrand itself in an effort to gain greater recognition and become more relevant to the young people it supports.

It is to take on the name Variety, the Children's Charity and, as part of the revamp, the organisation will be looking to bolster online charity communications through a brand new website, Civil Society reports.

Such a launch has been promised for the near future and should go some way to helping the good cause in its quest to become more accessible and usable for younger audiences.

The group has been helping children and youngsters who have experienced illness, disability and disadvantages for 60 years - and has decided now is the time to once again bring its operations up to date.

It has generated more than £200 million over the last six decades, helping more than one million children and young people in this time - and its new emphasis on online charity communications is likely to significantly bolster this level in the near future.

Variety's supporting statement is "improving young lives every day" - so it is anticipated that the rebrand will make the cause even more accessible to those it is looking to help.

A number of agencies have been approached by the charity in order to help it improve its image, while also lending a better platform from which it can promote its work and initiatives.

In addition, a public relations company has been enlisted by Variety to help put forward a strategic programme to help portray the organisation in the best possible light.

Malcolm Brenner, head of the board of trustees at the group, noted: "While our identity is changing, our total commitment to helping young people and children in need of support across the UK remains stronger than ever."

The new website is likely to form a vital part of this process, as most children have access to computers, with many of them even more literate on their laptop than their parents and grandparents.

To place a greater emphasis on online charity communications seems a logical next step for a good cause that has youngsters at the centre of its plans and ideas.

Operations carried out by Variety - such as providing Sunshine Coaches and electric wheelchairs, as well as organising trips and offering equipment to hospitals - might all benefit from the group having a greater online presence and embracing the opportunities the internet can bring to organisations of this type.

Variety is able to operate successfully thanks to the efforts of many volunteers who offer up their time and money - and a better understanding of the internet could make it easier for the group to attract even more kind-hearted people willing to give a helping hand.

A number of celebrities have lent their backing to Variety recently, including Harry Brown actor Michael Caine and Atonement performer James McAvoy, as well as comedian Ricky Gervais, whose comedy hits alongside co-writer Stephen Merchant include The Office, Extras and Life's Too Short.