About us

Founded in 2012, The Patchwork Foundation is a UK-based charity committed to strengthening democracy. We are focused on communities and individuals that are traditionally underrepresented, and seek to engage young people from these communities.

The Patchwork Foundation works to equip young people with the necessary skills and experience to encourage active participation in democracy and wider civil society. We believe that our society is only as good as our democracy and our democracy is only as great as the range of the voices within it. We know that increased confidence and self-belief leads to greater participation and realisation. The result is a stronger and more representative country; a nation where we encourage everyone to play their part, and a society that hears and responds to the needs of all.

The Patchwork Foundation mission is to promote and encourage the positive integration of disadvantaged and minority communities into British democracy and civil society. We are not affiliated with any political party and do not promote a particular political view. We do, however, work on the promotion of mainstream political and social participation and work with the main political parties and democratic institutions to support this agenda.

Our core beliefs

• Democracy is a force for good and politics is the greatest way to deliver change.
• Young people have the potential to shape the present and define the future.
• The quality of decision-making depends on the experiences that inform it.
• Change only exists when it is real, measurable and felt

Our values

COURAGE: We have the courage to stand up and speak; to sit down and listen; and to do what is right, not what is easy.

EMPATHY: We always do our best to stand in someone else’s shoes; feel with their heart; and see through their eyes.

OPENNESS: We are receptive to and respectful of new ideas and ways of thinking, even if they challenge our own.  

CURIOSITY: We are constantly questioning and learning as we always seek to better understand the world around us.  

COLLABORATION: We always work together because we know that alone we can do so little, while together we can do so much.