Successful Campaigns

UPDATE! We won the campaign! Communities Secretary Sajid Javid slipped out an announcement backing down on the plans at at the Local Government Association (LGA) councillors' forum on 19 January 2017 You can read his full speech here: https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/supporting-local-government Specifically this bit “Today I can confirm that the localisation of Attendance Allowance is no longer being considered as part of the business rates reforms. I’ll be announcing further details on business rates reforms shortly. But I can tell you now that Attendance Allowance will not be included.” This is fantastic news, and thank you so much to everyone that signed the petition and emailed the minister to help put pressure on him. It looks as though Attendance Allowance is safe for now!

We won! HSBC have removed the anti-homeless spikes from outside the New Street branch. Read more here: https://home.38degrees.org.uk/2015/11/27/homeless-spikes-campaign-win-birmingham-hsbc/

WE WON! 30/05/18 British citizen Andy Tsege has received a pardon from the Ethiopian Government after almost four years on death row in Ethiopia. Andy has now been released from prison and is now with his family in Ethiopia. After four unbelievably hard years for on death row this is wonderful news for Andy, his partner and their children. The new Ethiopian government should be recognised for what they have done today. “I am so thankful that the pain and anguish my children have had to go through could now soon be coming to an end. Helawit, Yilak and Menabe have spent too long without their father and we are all hoping Andy will be free to come home to us soon.” Yemi Hailemariam, Andy’s partner https://reprieve.org.uk/update/andy-tsege-is-pardoned-by-ethiopia/

We won! British Gas reversed their decision to increase the minimum top-up amount for customers on pay-as-you-go tariffs. They’ve slashed the amount from £5 back to £1. This means people will no longer be forced to decide between spending their last £5 before payday on heating their home, or putting food on the table. And it’s thanks to the 91,000 of us who signed a huge petition, and thousands of us who spoke up and shared our experiences directly with British Gas. The 38 Degrees staff team met the British Gas CEO, and took these stories straight to him. Preet Kaur Gill, the MP who started this campaign on the 38 Degrees website, said: “This is a vital win for the thousands of people affected by British Gas’s decision to raise the minimum pre-pay top-up. I am so thankful to 38 Degrees and the 91,000 people who signed our petition. It would not have been possible without them.”

It's been confirmed that after 27 years, BP’s sponsorship of the British Museum’s exhibitions has ended! This is a HUGE win for the movement for fossil free culture and everyone who has played a role in this campaign, including climate activists, culture campaigners, arts workers, youth strikers - and particularly those frontline groups directly impacted by BP that we were honoured to work with. https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2023/jun/02/british-museum-ends-bp-sponsorship-deal-after-27-years

The Jeremy Kyle Show has been axed by ITV after a huge public backlash around the show exploiting people for entertainment. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-48279613

We won! It's been announced that bus services on the popular Coasthopper route along the North Norfolk Coast will continue to run. http://www.itv.com/news/anglia/update/2018-03-08/coasthopper-bus-service-saved/

GOOD NEWS! 09/04/20 As a result of our campaign and petition, which achieved a fantastic 16,000 signatures, the Rose Theatre has been saved from closure. Kingston Council has announced that, instead of cutting the entirety of the Rose's £265,000 budget allocation, it will simply reduce funding by £20,000 this year, £15,000 next year and a further £30,000 in 2022-2023. After that, it is proposed that the yearly budget allocated for the Rose will remain at £200,000 a year. This is a major victory. The theatre, which was threatened with closure, now has a secure future. Politicians of many colours will undoubtedly try to claim credit for this victory, though no political party officially supported us in our fight; protecting the Rose was simply not on the agenda before our campaign and, without us, it would not have been saved. This is a real victory for community activism and demonstrates just how powerful ordinary people can be when we come together in the service of a common goal. Thank you so much for all of your help and everything you have done. This is a great outcome but not a perfect one. The Rose is still facing a significant reduction in funds over the next few years and there is still much to do (any thoughts on how to continue the fight are very welcome). Unfortunately, reforms by the current Council administration also make a future petition like this all but impossible. But, right now, we can enjoy this victory and take heart from a bit of good news. Kind regards, Phil Bevin Convener of Coalition Against Demolition (the organisation behind the Save the Rose campaign)

14/07/14 Great news! The government have scrapped their plans to privatise the Land Registry. What's more, 38 Degrees members' campaigning alongside high street solicitors, unions and MPs had a major impact on this outcome. So well done to everyone involved, we've saved another of our public services from privatisation! Hurrah!

Following this successful petition, the statue of Robert Milligan has been removed https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-52977088 There's now a new campaign to build a memorial to historic Londoner and Black anti-slave trade activist Olaudah Equiano in its place. Please sign here: https://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/build-a-memorial-for-olaudah-equiano-in-west-india-quay-london?bucket=win