CSR Work Significantly Ramped up in 2011
Monday, 20 February 2012 00:00
Throughout 2011 Newton continued to be actively involved with Engineers Without Borders (EWB-UK). A vast amount of our involvement last year focused on project management training to ensure those who were going out to do placements were equipped with the skills needed to run a successful programme. In addition, Nick Barlow and Steve Knight supported multiple specific projects remotely, and will be heading out to South Africa and the Philippines to provide some hands-on support in 2012.
In addition to corporate charitable events, Newton’s people have been involved with various challenges throughout the year with marathons, triathlons and cycle rides contributing to employee efforts. In 2011, thousands of pounds were raised through these activities for various charities across the UK.
A particular effort this year has been in linking our efforts to the community with celebrating Newton’s ten year anniversary. For instance we targeted 10% of Newton people to be set up on Payroll Giving and blood donation, of which we exceeded! Newton works across the UK so we consciously send bi-annual reminders about blood donation options near current site locations to help ensure that it is still possible to donate blood whilst working away from home. We have also established team support to help those squeamish amongst us get involved without too much fainting!
On an environment side, we looked at the impact we have on the environment as a company. The work we do reducing waste and improving efficiency in our projects was compared to the emissions we create from driving, flights and hotels as a few examples. The great news is that overall the impact of our work is positive on the carbon emission scale, but there are lots more opportunities for us to improve this and understand more about how we impact on the environment both directly and indirectly.
Looking forward, 2012 should be a very exciting year. From opportunities to get involved in mentoring TeachFirst graduates to volunteer days with Habitat for Humanity. We are all about providing more and more opportunities for our people to give something back to the community. Our work will continue with EWB-UK throughout 2012 and we are looking to organise some team charity events in the coming year. On the environment side, making sure we understand our emissions and reduce them where possible is top of the agenda.