Community-minded employees from Leep Utilities – one of the UK’s leading owner and operator of last-mile utility networks – have just completed two days volunteering for charities close to employees’ hearts.
The volunteer days mark the launch of the company’s corporate volunteering scheme and saw two teams – who work from the company’s Salford and Reading offices – give their experience, expertise and time.
They supported Manchester City Council’s Heaton Park and The Cowshed, in Berkshire, which is a compassionate and community-driven charity dedicated to providing support to individuals of all backgrounds during times of personal crisis.
Both causes were nominated by Leep employees – with more days planned and charities being nominated for the company to support in 2024.
Donating time to these very worthwhile causes supports Leep’s commitment to ESG and the environment, which is particularly relevant as a leading national utilities provider.
Staff from the company’s Salford headquarters gave their time to clear pathways, pick litter and undertake general maintenance at Heaton Park, a historic area on the edge of Manchester, to ensure that this very popular green space is clean and tidy for visitors.
Meanwhile, in Berkshire, employees from Leep’s Reading office supported The Cowshed by undertaking a whole host of tasks – from repairing office hardware to sorting donations, including washing, drying and ironing clothing, cleaning shoes and checking that equipment works.
“With only a limited number of staff, both Heaton Park and The Cowshed are heavily reliant on volunteers, so we were delighted to be able to give some of our time to them,” said Julie Spicher, Head of People and Culture at Leep Utilities.
“As a business, we’re new to corporate volunteering, but we recognise its importance and value to our employees, as they’re both causes that are close to their hearts. This duo of days’ time we donated marks our commitment to undertaking much more corporate volunteering from now on.
“Having spoken to our team, we know that they’re very keen to take part in more impact-driven and meaningful contributions with charities and causes local to our offices. And of course, ESG has never been more prominent on the corporate agenda so, as we grow as a business, we are focussed on developing the most robust strategy that benefits our local communities, our employee engagement and satisfaction, as well as our wider commercial objectives.
“These were the first of many more initiatives and we’re looking forward to building more connections between our environment and people.”
Brian Loft, Leep’s Operations Director who volunteered at The Cowshed, said:
“We had a great day with all of team pitching in and getting lots completed. Liz was a great host and I believe set the bar very high for the next visit by the next Leep team. The organisation is very much a well-oiled machine with different areas designated for all sorts of task and refurbishments.”
Liz Meadows, supervisor at The Cowshed said:
‘A big thank you to the fabulous team that came to help us – they accomplished so much, it really was incredible. And they were such a lovely bunch to work with too.”
