Comment by Deepa Mirchandani for February / March CCB116
The Prince of Wales calls on more businesses to help homeless people back into work.
The Ready to Work programme, part of Business in the Community’s Business Action on Homelessness initiative is seeking to double its efforts and get a further 2000 people back in to work by 2015. It’s an ambitious and worthy target. However, as the Prince rightly notes, homelessness has increased over the last six months and it’s envisaged that this increase will continue. Homelessness is a complex issue and there are a number of factors that contribute to the problem.
Unemployment is one and as the Government’s austerity plans persist and jobs in the public and private sector continue to be lost, one can’t help but wonder what the knock on effects will be. Unemployment in the UK currently stands at 7.9% with 1.46 million claiming benefits in January 2011. How far are and should businesses go in moving from the “professional” into the “personal” by questioning the stability of their employee’s housing? Maybe as a part of restructures and redundancies this is something that will define those who really do want to be responsible employers.
Also, what of those that are not in employment but are relying on the good grace of parents, partners and friends for accommodation while they complete unpaid internships as a means of trying to differentiate themselves and for the most part, try and be “in the right place at the right time”. Such opportunities are only available to those who can access such support and they are a minority. The implications on business in wanting a diverse and rich workforce are real and the pressure of dependence on family and friends is immense. The new generation of homeless are young graduates who can’t afford to pay the rent – the lack of affordable housing is a major issue. How many businesses ask their free interns where they living and at what cost?
The role of business in tackling homelessness is a complicated one. Helping people back in to work and out of the cycle of homelessness is clearly a worthy way to go but there is more that businesses could be doing by stepping into the “personal” domain of those that it does, or has employed.
Deepa Mirchandani is a Consultant at Corporate Citizenship. Contact her at deepa.mirchandani@corporate-citizenship to discuss community investment, LBG and impacts measurement.
CCB 116 – Community and contributions write ups
Co-operative StreetGames trains 2,000 young volunteers
The nationwide Co-operative StreetGames Young Volunteers’ programme has trained 2,000 young people from disadvantaged areas to become sports and community leaders. Volunteers from the scheme have contributed over 50,000 hours in total. The programme, supported by the Co-operative Group, trains volunteers aged between 16 and 25 in community leadership and sports coaching skills. The project addresses the lack of sports-based volunteering and recreational opportunities in deprived areas, allowing young people to contribute to their local community. This helps increase the national talent pool by training people who would otherwise not have had the chance to get involved. The programme aims to recruit over 3,000 volunteers in total by 2012.
UPS announced new grants in February totalling $7million to support the education and development of diverse populations across the US. More than 80 non-profit organisations have been chosen for support by the UPS Foundation, the company’s community contributions arm. Programmes have been chosen that promote the education, leadership skills and inclusion of women and ethnic minorities, as well as other potentially marginalised groups. Several of the largest grants went to the National Council of La Raza to support Hispanic American community-based organisations, the United Negro College Fund and the Organization of Chinese Americans. UPS’s diversity program is also aimed at attracting and retaining talented employees.
The Ready for Work programme, part of Business in the Community’s (BITC) Business Action on Homelessness movement, celebrated its 10th anniversary on 16 February. Business Action on Homelessness is a business movement supporting homeless individuals and those at risk of homelessness back into employment. There are 23 local programmes are operating across the UK and Ireland. Results of the Ready for Work programme to date have been positive: over 2,000 people have found employment, 40% of those completing the scheme. 74% of these are still in work after 3 months and 55% after 6 months. At an event to highlight these achievements, Business in the Community president HRH The Prince of Wales thanked the “far-sighted business leaders” who have taken part in the programme and urged companies to increase their support and to double the achievements of the programme going forward.
IBM deploys 100th team and 1,000th employee volunteer
IBM has celebrated its centennial by sending out its 100th team and 1,000th employee volunteer to a community project in Ghana, Africa. As part of a year-long, global celebration to mark its centennial, IBM is including its ‘Corporate Service Corps’ community volunteering programme as one of its 100 ‘Icons of Progress’, significant company accomplishments during the last century. The current project in Ghana follows several other Corporate Service Corps projects across Africa. Since 2008, IBM’s Corporate Service Corps has deployed 327 employees on 29 teams across the continent. They have worked with local organisations and businesses to support programs that assist local communities and drive economic development.
P&G provides 3 billionth litre of safe drinking water
Procter & Gamble‘s ‘Children’s Safe Drinking Water’ (CSDW) programme has provided 3 billion litres of clean drinking water in developing countries through the distribution of 300 million PUR packets. With the help of global health organisations, World Vision and PSI, P&G has provided water for people affected by the Pakistan floods and the Haiti earthquake as well as for vulnerable communities across the world.
A new report, published by consultancy Factary, mapping venture philanthropy (VP) in the UK has found that the industry is worth more than £1.5 billion and provides over £50 million of support for non-profits. This represents a large surge in investment since the VP industry started nine years ago. The report also found that over half of trustees of UK VP organisations come from the financial sector.
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