Heathrow helps turn Oysters into pearls to support vulnerable children

Passengers travelling through Heathrow Airport can now use their unwanted Oyster Cards to support Railway Children thanks to a new partnership.

London Underground has teamed up with Heathrow Airport to expand their Oyster Card scheme, which has supported our work for over 10 years.

The collaboration means that leftover Oyster cards can now be deposited in new branded boxes located at each terminal in Heathrow airport, and all of the remaining credit left on each card will be donated to Railway Children.

Corporate Partnerships Manager Dave Ellis said: “We are so proud of our partnership with London Underground and the expansion of the scheme to Heathrow Airport means that we will now have two of the world’s most recognisable brands in terms of travel, supporting our program. This will not only raise additional awareness for Railway Children and our essential work but through the Oyster cards donated by passengers or visitors to Heathrow it will have a very real impact on children’s lives.”

Dave added: “When you consider that just £6 will allow us to feed a child in India three meals a day for a week, £11 could buy a new set of clothes for a child in Africa and £20 could fund an hour of support work for a UK runaway child or young person and their family, the difference Heathrow customers will be making to the lives of children and young people becomes incredibly apparent and will last long after they have left Heathrow for their destinations around the world.”

London Underground teamed up with Heathrow Airport to support our work even further in East Africa, India and the UK.

Tony Caccavone, Surface Access Director at Heathrow said: “We are proud to work with London Underground in support of Railway Children and its work to protect vulnerable children.  We encourage all our passengers to travel by public transport to the airport, donate their Oyster cards and start their journey right by helping to improve the lives of children across the globe.”

London Underground’s Integration & Performance Manager Alan Mundy welcomed the expansion to the program and added that “the additional collection boxes within the airport terminals will give customers leaving London who find that they still have an Oyster card that they no longer need, an opportunity to donate their card and help the many vulnerable children that Railway Children work with.”