Connecting with our communities

Helping make bigger things happen where we live and work

We are passionate about building meaningful connections with the local communities where we live and work. In addition to employing local people in our stores, we support national, state, and local causes to support individuals and groups that need it the most, with a particular focus on helping educate disadvantaged students.

A part of our local community

We operate in more than 170 local communities, from large regional towns, to suburban centres and CBD locations. We are committed to making meaningful connections in our local communities, from the customers and businesses who shop with us to our local schools, sporting clubs, charities and community groups.

Our team members live and work in our communities and are the forefront of helping us drive our local projects. From meaningful contributions to in-store activities, we aim to get behind and support our local community.

Who do we provide support to locally?

Our store teams select the local charity or group they would like to support based on their connections within the community, and who needs it the most. See if your organisation meets these requirements in the table below.

Local support requirements

Officeworks Make a Difference Appeal

Our annual Make a Difference Appeal gives our team members the opportunity to champion local causes and organisations that are important to them and their community.

Customers can round up their purchases in-store or donate online, with funds going directly to support local community organisations.

Together with our generous customers, we raised over $830,000 for the 2024 Make a Difference Appeal which supported 16 organisations across Australia that promote inclusion and enable children to learn, create and connect for a sustainable future.

Organisations supported in FY24 were:

Backpacks 4 Vic Kids, Give Write, Caring Kids, Creating Chances, Kids4Kids Foundation, Kids Giving Back, Kids Under Cover, Life Education, My Room Children’s Cancer Charity, OzChild, Speak UP! Stay ChatTY, Stationery Aid, The Backpack Venture, The Les Twentyman Foundation, Treasure Boxes and Waalitj Foundation.

Our national partnerships

We are proud supporters of education, and we believe that every student in Australia deserves access to a quality education. That’s why, through our national partnerships we’re raising valuable funds to support the children who need it most.

The Smith Family

Research shows that one in six children in Australia grows up in poverty without access to the basics they need to thrive at school.

Every year from December to February our Back to School Appeal supports children and helps to break that cycle of disadvantage.

By making a donation in store or online, our customers help us raise vital funds to support The Smith Family’s Learning for Life Scholarships, which provide emotional, practical and financial support to help disadvantaged children and young people with their education.

The Australia Literacy and Numeracy Foundation (ALNF)

All funds raised by our annual Literacy is Freedom Appeal go directly towards supporting key ALNF programs including ‘Early Language and Literacy’, Literacy Pack and ‘Share a Book’. All provide life-changing support to improve literacy levels of Indigenous and marginalised children to ensure they’re ready for school, no matter their circumstances.

Officeworks and ALNF have been in partnership since 2013, and together with our customers, have raised more than $4.2 million and supported more than 35,000 students in that decade.