In February 2015, during London Fashion Week, the JLL held its second annual Little Black Dress Initiative (LBDI) – a poverty awareness and fundraising campaign, where participants wear one black dress for an entire week, to illustrate the effects poverty has on access to resources, confidence and employment opportunities.

Photos and stories were shared daily on social media as #JLLwearsLBD. As the week progressed, we heard participants reflect on how having limited options impacted how they felt. We even had several members choose to live below the poverty line – £10/day per person, for a family of four – to further experience the effects of limited access to resources.

Thank you to all the women who participated in LBDI. Whether it was fundraising and wearing the dress, supporting fellow League members, sharing the Initiative, or organising external clothing drives, we were hugely impressed with the level of participation across the board.

It was due to this support, that we were able to provide Smart Works and Suited & Booted with plenty of interview-appropriate outfits, and we surpassed our fundraising goal of £25,000. The amount raised is enough to fund an entire year of the JLL’s community projects.