Silver Jubilee Big Tick

United Utilities - Silver Jubilee Big Tick

A twenty year relationship with Groundwork and ten years of support for Wigan Education Business Partnership

It is great to work with a company that is forward thinking and so committed to the communities it serves.

Roger HarmerHead of Fundraising and Development, Groundwork UK

United Utilities (UU) owns and operates water, waste-water, electricity and gas networks predominantly in North West England, but also throughout the UK and overseas. It employs more than 8,000 people and has a turnover in excess of £2billion. United Utilities' longstanding commitment to sustainability has been particularly focussed on the environment and on education.

Their programme has developed over the last twenty years from traditional, philanthropic support to a more robust partnership approach where real business and community benefit can be achieved, measured and communicated.

For many years they worked with community organizations with an environmental purpose such as Groundwork, the Wildlife Trust, Lake District National Park and Mersey Basin Campaign. They also set up a progressive education programme, teaching schoolchildren about the water cycle.

In 1997, their first stakeholder research helped them to develop a revised community investment approach highlighting their successful partnerships, and prompted a communications programme to realise additional value. This new programme focussed on six focus areas,aligned to their core business, enabling them to concentrate on activities which achieved maximum mutual benefit - environment, extra needs, education, enterprise, economy and health and safety.

For example, the education programme has been developed and delivered in partnership with a number of key organisations such as the Wigan Education Business Partnership and supports the National Curriculum as well as UU’s sustainable development policy. Activities include raising awareness of United Utilities role in the water cycle, the working of the electricity distribution network, improving awareness of safety issues and their capital investment programme.

Similarly United Futures, UU’s award winning flagship community partnership with Groundwork covering employment, social inclusion, volunteering and environmental enhancement has developed from a 20 year relationship.  The new programme focuses on national reach, aligning to UU’s growth in new market areas such as the North East, Wales and the South East.

To support these and other partnerships, and to engage the time and the talents of their employees, UU provides a developing range of volunteering opportunities for its people including time off work for volunteering, payroll giving and matched-funding and community grant schemes.

Timeline

1997

North West Water (NWW) commitments and policy published

1998

IIP award for North West Water (NWW was the first privatised water company to achieve this accreditation)

1999

Charter Mark achieved

Norweb community policy developed

£2m million raised for WaterAid

‘Environment Report’ wins top ACCA award,

2000

Business in the Community company of the year

2001

North West Water and Norweb renamed as United Utilities 

Sustainable development panel and CSR steering group established

2002

Official partnership for Manchester 2002 Commonwealth Games

UU included in FTSE 4 Good and Dow Jones

Raised £50,000 through ‘100 days to make a difference’ campaign in support of the Lake District National Park foot and mouth crisis fund

2003

First combined ‘Corporate Responsibility Report’ published

2004

Awarded Big Tick for sustainable catchment management

Groundwork Partnership developed

2005

SCaMP created. (Sustainable Catchment Management Programme)

Official partner for Liverpool 2008 Capital of Culture

2006

United Utilities Carbon Forum set up

United Futures partnership created with Groundwork

2007

United Utilities is the first water company to publicly announce a £37m action plan to reduce emissions and launch a Carbon Strategy.

Impact

  • Each year 10,000 children visit UU’s free regional Environmental Education centres with 100% teacher satisfaction, 7000 children are taught about electricity through their Electricity Classroom and mobile tutors, and 15, 000 young people visit their Anderton Reservoir Outdoor pursuits centre.
  • Through United Futures 21 unemployed people have been supported back into work and received over 600 hours of training through work-based placements, environmental projects have improved 159 hectares of land enhancing 12 sites, and 100 small businesses have benefited from initiatives to reduce water consumption and improve resource efficiency.
  • In 2006 71% of UU employees believed that UU is a socially responsible member of the community, while 70% believed that UU is environmentally responsible.
  • In 2001 69% of stakeholders agreed that UU met their expectations in fulfilling its social and environmental responsibilities - a rise from 60% in 1999.
  • Their non-regulated and competitive business increasingly uses the track record of community investment as part of its competitive tenders. Successful bids involving a case study on their community approach included new contracts with Northern Gas Networks, Welsh Water and Southern Water.

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