Each year since 1998 the AFD Group has held a charity evening at which it donates a large proportion of its profits to charities working in the Isle of Man, the British Isles, and throughout the world.

Each member of AFD’s fifty strong workforce is invited to nominate a charity to receive a company donation in their name and this year AFD will have donated well over ?750,000. AFD’s staff, charity and community representatives, and the company’s neighbours gather this evening [Thursday 26th November] to celebrate these donations.

AFD Software Limited have specialised in postcode software for over twenty years – in fact they distribute data on the 29 million delivery addressees in the UK from the Royal Mail’s mainframe computer files, to the over 40,000 organisations who use it on their web-sites or in their record systems. AFD’s products are at the heart of web sites and computer databases where using the postcode helps businesses, charities and public sector organisations to enter addresses quickly, accurately and consistently.

AFD has recently moved to the Mountain View Innovation Centre on the site of the Island Film Studios, just outside Ramsey, where it is making a multi-million pound investment for future growth, for the development of new and growing technology businesses, and to make a range of facilities and venues available for community use. “This is the night we look forward to every year” says group Director, Alison Dorricott “when, by partnering with charities, churches and community initiatives, we can help make a massive difference in the world for so many people”.

Amongst over 70 charities receiving donations in 2015, AFD is helping feed people in Sudan, and providing development resources for Malawi and Uganda. Many organisations helping those with serious illnesses or working on medical research in the British Isles are also included. Closer to home, AFD is partnering with Graih to help those who are homeless, and the Northern Live at Home scheme who help older people in the North of the Island to stay, with dignity, in their own homes.

Some years ago, AFD established a partnership with Hope for Justice, a Christian charity in the UK who began work to investigate and help people trapped in slavery or by people trafficking.

This year, guests at AFD’s event will be able to hear of the progress made by Hope for Justice in releasing over 130 people in the UK during 2015 alone, including recently gaining the release of Ofonime Inuk who had been imprisoned for 24 years in the UK. They will also hear, first-hand, Fiona Broadfoot’s story. At just 15 years old, Fiona was herself groomed and trafficked from her home in Bradford to London and forced into prostitution.

Neville Hilton, AFD’s business development director explains “Fiona now specialises in prevention and early intervention; she not only works directly with girls and young women - but she also works closely with key agencies to promote an appropriate response to their needs.

She is a well-respected national and international public speaker on this issue.

She has given key-note speeches and facilitated workshops at conferences including the ‘National Association of Chief Police Officers’, the ‘British Council on Trafficking and Prostitution’ and the ‘United Nations Commission on the Status of Women’."

AFD’s event takes place this evening at the Mountain View Innovation Centre, on Jurby Road, Lezayre – just outside Ramsey.