Community

The Group endeavours to contribute to the communities in which it operates particularly those neighbouring its sites. SIG is a member of Business in the Community in the UK and has worked with that organisation to help to develop its approach and practices. This is mainly achieved through charitable donations and other initiatives that help the community.

2008 saw SIG Insulations become the main sponsor for the Sheffield Half Marathon event, which raised a record breaking £75,000 for good causes.

Richard Green, Sales Director, SIG Insulations “SIG Insulations is proud of its roots in Sheffield and only too pleased to be involved in one of the great participation events in the city”

As part of our continuing CR programme SIG in conjunction with the Children’s Safety Education Foundation sponsored 250 children aged between 7 to 11 years in three schools in Essex, Leeds and Chesterfield nominated by employees, with unique interactive learning resources covering topics such as drug and solvent misuse, alcohol, smoking, first aid, racial harassment, hate crime, bullying, anti-social behaviour, trespassing and vandalism and provide safety resources focusing on road, rail, fire, water, electricity, gas and safety in the home.

The HR Director has responsibility for community issues within the Group and reports to the Chief Executive who is responsible for community issues at Board level.

Donations

During the year the Group made donations of £210,000 (2007: £162,000). It is the Group’s policy not to make political donations and no political donations were made in the year (2008: £nil).

The Group has a dedicated Charitable Donations Policy. The Policy in addition to supporting local causes where SIG employees are involved is to provide support for three main charities for a period of three years.

For the three years commencing January 2008 the three main charities that the Group will be supporting are:

• Henshaws College (a charity working with young people, all of whom are visually impaired with additional disabilities) www.henshaws.org.uk
• Action For Kids www.actionforkids.org (a national charity working with disabled children and young people, their parents and carers)
• St Lazarus Hospice (a charity providing assistance for terminally ill individuals and help and support for families in Krakow, Poland).

During 2008 SIG’s donation enabled Henshaws College to recruit a Volunteer Co-ordinator to facilitate the creation of a volunteer service, that has been able to recruit, train and support volunteers who help people affected by sight loss to reach their true potential in life.

Henshaws College now have a dedicated volunteer based at their Arts and Crafts Centre in Knaresborough, North Yorkshire where volunteers can learn about volunteering opportunities and we have been able to have training sessions, such as visual impairment awareness, sighted guide and health and safety for visually impaired people that have enabled new and existing volunteers to work safely and effectively.

“Henshaws would like to take the opportunity to thank SIG for giving us a chance to use volunteers to help us to turn our commitment, philosophy and ethos into practical help for the people we support”

2008 saw the first year of SIG’s partnership with Action For Kids, a charity working to create independence, opportunities and offer support to disabled children, young people and their families all around the UK. During 2008 SIG’s donation allowed 100 disabled young people to receive relevant training programmes focusing on office skills and preparation for entering working environments. In addition four young children received specialist mobility equipment to the value of £10,000, which has enabled them to achieve a greater independence.

“Action For Kids would like to express the gratitude of the staff, students and families we work with to everyone at SIG plc for their long-term support and generosity. Action For Kids is a relatively small charity which relies entirely on voluntary funding. Therefore a substantial donation like SIG’s really does have an impact on making a real difference to the lives of disabled children and young people and their future independence and wellbeing”

2008 was also the first year that the Group supported an overseas charity, St Lazarus Hospice in Krakow Poland, which was nominated by European employees. Donations during the year allowed the purchase of vital equipment such as a Lymphatic Massager, Medication Refrigerator, Medical Waste Cabinets and an Operation Aspirator. In addition the ventilation room was modernised and work began on installing a new heating system.

“The hospice would like to express their sincere thanks to SIG on behalf of the patients under St Lazarus Hospice’s care – they are all extremely grateful for the donation”

Staff are kept informed of charitable activities and are encouraged to attend events as appropriate, as a means of encouraging them to be personally associated with charitable work and in particular with the causes supported by the Group. This has included sponsorship for individuals entering specific events and support in kind for building projects.

The Group has in place a Payroll Giving Scheme, which is available to all UK employees. Employees are free to choose one of the current SIG sponsored charities listed above or any other charity of their choice. During the year an initiative was undertaken to re-launch the scheme to all UK employees. During the year donations of £16,831 were made through the scheme.

For further information see the SIG Charitable Donations Policy