CSR - why we want to connect with our community

Entanet is in an exciting position at the forefront of driving the channel’s adoption of full fibre connectivity - delivering the future-proof infrastructure that will enrich the lives of those in the communities we serve for many years to come.

It’s this strong focus on making a positive impact in the community that led to the foundation of our CSR Committee in May 2018 with the slogan ‘Connecting the Community’. The committee is made up of 13 passionate volunteers from across the business who develop, run and coordinate the CSR activities of Entanet in the community, focusing particularly on four key areas: fundraising, volunteering, environmental impact, and equality and diversity.

In a short space of time, Entanet’s CSR committee has driven real change in the business, particularly in our environmental impact. We use motion-sensored LED lighting in our new Telford office to reduce energy consumption in areas of the building that aren’t being actively used and our energy provider supplies us from renewable sources. We’ve also implemented a company-wide recycling scheme.

We’ve done much to raise awareness and funds for our chosen charities: The Midlands Air Ambulance Charity operates a Helicopter Emergency Medical Service in the Midlands area of England and Meningitis Now is a charity working towards a future where no-one in the UK dies from meningitis and everyone affected gets the support they need. We established which charities to support via a public vote, where employees chose their preference from a list of contenders.

We encourage collaborative working amongst different departments to create fun and engaging projects that enable staff to volunteer their time and resources to make an impact in the local community. We are also committed to encouraging more young people and women into the ICT sector.

Volunteering is something for which Entanet’s CSR Committee has a passion and on which we place real focus. That’s why employees have the opportunity to take a paid day from the business each year to volunteer with a charity of their choice.

Our Service Desk Analyst, Hannah Jinks, is one of a number of staff to utilise her volunteering time by supporting The Midlands Air Ambulance Charity at one of it’s local charity stores in Telford.

“My volunteering day was hugely rewarding: although it was completely different from my day to day role, I was able to adapt and quickly felt like a member of the team. My role involves a large amount of customer service via phone interaction, so it was great to put those skills to use in a more face-to-face environment for a great cause,” said Hannah.

I spent my 2018 volunteering day in much the same way and echo Hannah’s sentiments, such community service is hugely enriching and a number of us are looking forward to spending more time volunteering with The Midlands Air Ambulance Charity both in-store and at a number of their events this year.

As a business with ambitious growth plans a key part of making a positive difference in the community is supporting the health and wellbeing of our 145 staff based in Telford. For example, we recently held a number of sessions on mental health awareness, led by Telford based mental health specialists Merulae, to help staff recognise symptoms, talk openly about the subject and identify ways in which we can support each other.

This event marks the start of Entanet’s relationship with Meruale and we’re very excited about further opportunities to grow alongside such a compassionate, expert organisation. Meruale provide bespoke training, counselling, psychotherapy, clinical supervision and governance. Therefore, we are taking our journey to the next step and training members of staff in becoming ‘Mental Health First Aiders’ to offer more support to employees that need it.

We believe that by cultivating a culture that makes our staff feel motivated and valued in the workplace and supports the wider community, including businesses and key public services, through our future-proof full fibre services, we can play a big part in building a better future for the UK.

Relevant links

• Midlands Air Ambulance: www.midlandsairambulance.com/
• Meningitis Now: www.meningitisnow.org/
• Meruale: https://merulae.net/

Related articles

• Entanet Opinion Blog: Entanet appoints new CSR committee and announces nominated charities for 2018/19
• Entanet Opinion Blog: Why connecting with your community matters
• Entanet Opinion Blog: Corporate Social Responsibility: Is it worthwhile for businesses?