Macclesfield digital agency helps global humanitarian charity strengthen fundraising through digital transformation. Macclesfield-based human-centred design agency Nexer Digital has completed a major digital transformation project for The HALO Trust, creating a new online platform designed to help the international charity increase donations, improve supporter engagement and strengthen its global digital presence. Nexer Digital was appointed to redesign and develop the charity's primary website as part of a wider strategy to support fundraising growth and deliver a more accessible, user-focused digital experience. The HALO Trust is the world's oldest humanitarian mine clearance organisation, working in more than 30 conflict-affected countries and territories to clear landmines and other explosive hazards, helping communities rebuild after conflict. Its new digital platform has been designed to support ambitious fundraising objectives, while making it easier for supporters to understand the charity's global impact and take action. A key aim of the project was to create a consistent experience for supporters, while enabling tailored content for audiences in the UK, US and Ukraine. The redesigned website places greater emphasis on donation journeys, campaign content and programme pages, helping visitors better understand the impact of their support. Behind the scenes, a new content management system built on Umbraco 17 enables the charity's teams to create campaigns, publish content and manage regional communications more efficiently. The platform has also been designed to meet WCAG 2.2 AA accessibility standards, ensuring it can be used by as many people as possible. Throughout the nine-month project, Nexer Digital worked with teams across The HALO Trust's global operations, alongside international brand consultancy DragonRouge, which refreshed the charity's visual identity and tone of voice during the redevelopment. Following the successful completion of the project, Nexer Digital has also been retained to provide ongoing support and optimisation under a year-long support contract. Jo Dunning, Account Director at Nexer Digital, said: "The HALO Trust has an ambitious vision for growing its fundraising and reaching more supporters around the world. Its role has been to create a digital platform that removes barriers to engagement, makes donating simpler and gives the charity the flexibility to respond quickly with campaigns and content. "As a human-centred design agency, we focused on understanding the needs of donors, supporters and internal teams to create a platform that works for everyone while reflecting the incredible impact of HALO's work." Amy Olson, Global Head of Digital Platforms at The HALO Trust, said: "Its website is one of the most important ways people discover its work, understand the impact of their support and choose to donate. "Nexer Digital has helped us create a platform that better reflects our global mission while making it easier for supporters to engage with us and for our teams to manage content across different regions. It provides a strong foundation for the next phase of our digital strategy." The new platform is expected to help increase online donations, improve the user experience, better demonstrate the charity's global impact and provide richer insight to inform future fundraising and digital campaigns. It also gives content teams a more efficient publishing workflow, enabling campaigns and updates to be launched more quickly across multiple international audiences.

Hunger and war: conflict, food security and nutrition. A new policy paper on the urgent and interconnected challenges of modern conflict, food insecurity and malnutrition The HALO Trust, in partnership with the Eleanor Crook Foundation (ECF), has released a new policy paper. This highlights the urgent and interconnected challenges of modern conflict, food insecurity, and malnutrition. It also looks at the critical role that integrated responses can play in breaking this cycle. Despite decades of progress, malnutrition remains one of the leading threats to child survival. It is one of the most urgent and preventable threats to child survival globally. Recent global funding cuts risk reversing hard-won gains. Conflict is now the primary driver of acute food insecurity in the world's most fragile contexts, disrupting food systems, displacing communities and restricting access to life-saving nutrition services. The paper underscores how landmines and unexploded ordnance deepen these challenges. In many conflict-affected regions, unsafe land prevents families from farming. It blocks access to markets and health facilities, and undermines the recovery of local food systems. "In fragile and conflict-affected states, food insecurity can intensify complex socio-economic, political and cultural pressures by deepening grievances, weakening community resilience, and heightening social tensions that can spark unrest. When conflict does erupt, it disrupts food systems, restricts access to nutritious food, and drives new waves of food insecurity." HALO and ECF Policy Paper The paper draws on evidence from Afghanistan, Angola, Ukraine and other conflict-affected countries. It demonstrates how demining can unlock agricultural recovery, strengthen food security and enable the delivery of essential nutrition services. In Angola, clearance has led to a 199% increase in crop income and a 58% rise in investment in agricultural inputs. This shows that safe land is a foundation for long-term resilience. The policy paper sets out practical recommendations for the the UK Government, building on its global leadership in nutrition and humanitarian mine action. These include: * integrating nutrition, humanitarian, development and peace-building strategies under the UK's commitment to the Global Compact on Nutrition Integration * scaling up support for nutrition services in conflict and post-conflict settings, including addressing gaps in ready-to-use therapeutic food * embedding mine action within food security and nutrition strategies, recognising demining as a prerequisite for sustainable recovery * leveraging platforms such as the Child Nutrition Fund to coordinate financing and accelerate delivery of life-saving supplies * strengthening joint assessments and referral systems between mine action teams and nutrition services More than two billion people live in places affected by violent conflict. This paper calls for a more coherent approach that aligns UK defence, diplomacy and development efforts. By integrating demining with nutrition and food security, the UK can deliver better value for money, support long-term stability, and help communities rebuild.