Corporate sustainability > Community investment
Other pages in this section: Environment Policy
We will create Local Community Investment Plans which will help co-ordinate and maximise our community investments.
Sustainability target
• Establish Local Community Investment Plans by 2010
• Measure employee fit to local diversity by 2010
• Measure local procurement and jobs by 2010
Our active involvement in the local communities where we operate has been strengthened by the establishment of the May Gurney Foundation.
The Foundation will donate £300,000, over three years, in support of charities that help young people and the long-term unemployed get into work - focusing on improving opportunities for people in terms of education, self help, health and well-being, and the environment.
During the year, the May Gurney Foundation has supported a number of good causes which include:
The Ivy Project in Exeter, which works with young people from a diverse range of backgrounds - particularly those at risk from social exclusion. Our support will be targeted at training disadvantaged young people to carry out job searches, complete application forms and perform well at interviews.
The Clinks Care Farm in Norfolk, the first of its kind in the area, offers a place for disadvantaged and unemployed people to gain hands-on experience of working on a farm, adopting a concept popular in The Netherlands. In addition to teaching core skills, the project aims to get people into work, access further education or move on to volunteer placements while boosting confidence, self-belief and improving physical and mental wellbeing.
Hele Hub in South Devon which delivers training courses to increase self-confidence and build local community skills. Our support funds IT courses to teach learners how to navigate a computer, carry out internet research and to use office programmes – like word processing – to boost their chances of getting into employment.
In Sussex, residents at the Crawley Foyer, which trains and houses young people who would otherwise be homeless, will start a new qualification thanks to a donation from the Foundation. The new course covers food hygiene, first aid, drug awareness, budgeting and other essential life-skills with the aim of helping them to progress into formal education, other training, volunteering or into employment.
Community Action Norwich (CAN) runs social outreach programmes to address the issues of youth crime, substance addiction, family breakdown, and isolation of the elderly. With our support, CAN will be able to deliver its STEP programme which offers support to victims of exploitative lifestyles, including women exiting prostitution, victims of domestic abuse and young people trapped in drug addition.
In addition to supporting good causes in the communities where we operate, an important part of the Foundation’s work is also to support our people through match-funding their charitable activities. During the year, we supported 44 employees from our operations across the UK to raise funds for a wide range of good causes, including the Race for Life, Cancer Research, the British Heart Foundation, Help for Heroes, Birmingham St Mary’s Hospice, the Arthritis Research Campaign and the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust.
The cornerstone of our community programme in Norfolk continues to be the Norfolk & Norwich Festival (NNF), the largest arts festival in the Eastern Region and a core element in Norwich’s bid to be the first UK Capital of Culture in 2013. This is the third year we have supported the free outdoor events programme – MG Free – which we have developed to attract and engage people of all ages and from every part of our local community.
This year, more than 36,000 people enjoyed our free events. Our work with the NNF was recognised this year by a prestigious Arts & Business Award in the Young People category.
