Corporate Social Responsibility Newsletter - November 2022

Corporate Social Responsibility

Introduction

We are proud to have Corporate and Social Responsibility fully integrated in to the way in which we work at Albert Goodman which is not only evident from some of our values which include being green and community focussed but also from our actions and delivered results as summarised in this 6 monthly snapshot update.

SOPHIE PARKHOUSE, PARTNER

LOCAL BUSINESSES IN TAUNTON ADDRESS THE CLIMATE CRISIS BY LAUNCHING THE BLACKBROOK GREEN FORUM

Albert Goodman and Clarke Willmott have launched an initiative known as the Blackbrook Green Forum with the aim of working together with other businesses on the Blackbrook Business Park in Taunton and its surrounds to improve and protect the local environment.

Launched this month at Albert Goodman’s offices, the event attracted a great turnout which was attended by most businesses on the park. It included an introduction to the forum and hopes of what it wants to achieve collectively by bringing together more businesses that are equally as passionate about sharing ideas and taking proactive steps that will be good for local people, local businesses and the planet.

Some initial steps discussed already include inter-company car sharing, more electric points provided and an increase in recycling.

The forum hopes to meet quarterly to encourage others to get involved and progress all things green.

Sophie Parkhouse, partner at Albert Goodman, said: “Blackbrook Business Park has a real collaborative feel

about it and by joining forces with Clarke Wilmott and other businesses right on our doorstep to make a positive impact feels like a step in the right direction. I lead all things net zero at Albert Goodman and plan how we are going to transition to our goals by 2030.

“To take this one step further and invite the local business community to share in our vision feels really exciting. If everyone can make a small contribution today, it will have a big impact on our local environment long-term.”

Dale Edwards, Strategy Consultant for Green Energy at Clarke Willmott, added: “Partnering with Albert Goodman on such a worthy cause is fantastic as we always enjoy working with the team. The launch went very well, and we had lots of conversations which gives us hope that we can preserve and enhance our surroundings with like-minded people who are all keen to take responsibility.

“I can’t wait to encourage more businesses on Blackbrook Business Park to join our cause and be part of something that will create a positive legacy here in Taunton.”

Albert Goodman has completed the first stage to becoming B Corp Certified, having successfully submitted and passed the B Impact Assessment.

The B Corp community is a community of leaders, driving a global movement of people who continually strive to do things better for its team, the planet and the people within it. Albert Goodman is proud to start the process in joining this prestigious community, which is the result of a whole-team approach and several years of hard work, to drive the practical, cultural and legal changes which help them be a force for good.

Albert Goodman was assessed on a points system and measured against five categories, including: governance, workers, customers, community, and the environment, with 80 points needed to pass.

B Corp Certification is a highly selective status and companies must document their positive impact to qualify and undergo verification every three years to maintain their certification.

Sophie Parkhouse, Partner at Albert Goodman, said: “We are committed to our purpose of “collaborate to achieve” and are pleased to discover that by following our core values alone, and continuing with our current ways of working, our B Corporation Impact Assessment has allowed us to become B-Corp certified.

“Our amazing team have navigated us through the rigorous application process involved and we are thrilled to bits that our efforts have paid off which marks a step change in how we run our business. And this is just the start of our journey!

ALBERT GOODMAN charity OF THE YEAR

Following on from our success in supporting Children’s Hospice South-West for 2021-22 (for which we raised over £12,000), we are delighted that the firm will be supporting MIND for our 2022-23 year.

MIND was chosen by you following an open nomination and voting process. The total amount raised will be split by local MIND charities – 60% going to Mind in Somerset, 20% to Dorset Mind and 20% going to Bristol Mind (based on the split of our office locations).

We have received presentations from MIND to learn more about managing their own mental health, how to help others and some of the fantastic work done by these charities.

We have already held some fantastic events including a great firm wide rounders event. There will be a particular focus for World Mental Health Day on 10th October, including a bake sale and a quiz, all designed to raise funds for the charity. We are also supporting our staff through training and awareness sessions delivered by our trained Mental Health First Aiders, with various activities throughout the whole week.

The charity fundraising team meet regularly to come up with ideas for future events – if you have any ideas or would like to join the team, please let your rep know.

THE REPS FOR EACH OFFICE/DEPARTMENT ARE:

BRISTOL - Dawn Mills

TAUNTON AUDIT - Michelle Ferris

TAUNTON BSG - Tom Lock

TAUNTON CENTRAL SERVICE - Susie Parkhouse

TAUNTON FARMS AND ESTATES - Katie Strickland

We look forward to reporting our progress in future editions!

MICHELLE FERRIS

TAUNTON TAX & INSOLVENCYAbbey Short and Karolina Strucka

WESTON - Leanne Loughlin

WEYMOUTH - Rob Kennedy

YEOVIL - Yoana Greenan

Albert Goodman starts the process to join the b-corp certification community

CYCLE TO WORK DAY - AUGUST 4TH 2022!

Many of you may not even have heard of Cycle to Work Day but it is a national initiative now in its tenth year and is the UK’s leading one-day commuting event. The basic principle of the day is very simple – to celebrate everyday cycling. It provides an opportunity for all employees to get in the saddle and experience the benefits of cycling – from boosting mental wellbeing and improving fitness to cutting our carbon footprint. It doesn’t matter how far or fast you travel on the day, whether you are new to cycling or an accomplished cyclist, everyone has the chance to get involved.

We took part in this last year for the first time for the reasons listed above but also to be able to raise some money for our charity of the year. This year, our charity of the year is Mind.

What we have done:

Cycle to Workday fell on Thursday 4th August this year. Last year our aim was to complete 351 miles which is the distance between our Bristol and Weymouth offices. However, this year’s aim was to double this and get back to Bristol with our miles – therefore total of 702 miles.

In the Taunton office, we provided:

„ Two turbo trainers in the Reception Area which were booked out in 15-minute slots by colleagues.

„ ‘On your Bike’, a local Taunton charity, came to Goodwood House on the day offering free bicycle safety checks to those of you who choose to cycle to the office.

Firstly, I would like to say a massive thankyou to everyone who participated and donated to our second Cycle To Work Day we have taken part in. Throughout the day, we achieved the following miles in each office:

2022 TOTALS 2021 TOTALS

Taunton 169.70 Yeovil 86.2

Weston 34.98 Chard 27.9 Weymouth 93.70 Weymouth 120

Yeovil 221.74 Weston 46.05 Bristol 6.00 Taunton 170.35

GRAND TOTAL 526.12 GRAND TOTAL 450.5

Although we didn’t reach our ambitious target of 702 miles, which was purposely set high to challenge and inspire, we did progress significantly from last year’s total miles, which had a percentage increase of 16.8%! Raising a fantastic £304 for our charity of the year MIND, which will also be matched by the Partnership. A massive well done to all who took part.

Electric Car Salary Scheme

Following Iain’s updates, we are delighted to be launching the Electric Dreams salary sacrifice car scheme, in partnership with Octopus Electric Vehicles (OEV).

You can drive a brand-new electric car using part of your gross salary, making savings on income tax and national insurance. You will pay some company car tax (Benefit in Kind) but the rates for electric cars are extremely low until 2025.

You can save up to 40% on driving a brand-new electric car with maintenance, tyres and more included, plus insurance. There are some added extras too, if you order a car before the end of the year, please see the attachment. The small print does say the offer ends on April 2022, but this has been extended until 31 December 2022.

We are mindful that you will have many questions; please find some easy-access resources and information below.

THE ELECTRIC DREAMS TOOLKIT

Here you will find all the latest resources from Octopus EV. Access the: Electric Dreams Toolkit

DRIVERS HANDBOOK

The driver’s handbook can be found here via the link Electric Dreams Driver Handbook.doc or on share point which details the terms and conditions of the scheme.

WEBINARS

Octopus EV host weekly “intro to electric dreams” webinars where you can learn all about salary sacrifice and how to get your car. You can register here.

THE OCTOPUS ELECTRIC VEHICLE TEAM

There is a dedicated Octopus team to support us with all aspects of the Scheme. Please direct any questions about the scheme or vehicle related to the Octopus Electric Vehicle team, you can always book a call with them here or they are available at 020 3870 3892 and sales@octopusev.com

If you have any further questions, please e-mail hr@albertgoodman.co.uk

In the last edition of the

news, we acknowledge that there had been a regression in the adoption of

paperless ways of working in some areas of the

We therefore put out a challenge to see who could achieve the largest % reduction in their

volumes during May to September when comparing to the prior year. The stats are in and the results are below, showing that pleasingly, the majority of our offices have successfully reduced their printing volumes when comparing to the previous year – well done! We are going to continue to monitor and publish our