First set of award finalists named
Today sees the announcement of the three Devon and Cornwall businesses that have reached the final round of the Business Challenge 2008 Corporate Social Responsibility award, one of three exciting new categories for this year.
Seeking to find the business that best combines a focus on commercial success with an active emphasis on making a positive impact in the community and the environment, the 2008 finalists for the new Corporate Social Responsibility award, presented by Bond Pearce are:
- Bailey Partnership
- Landmark
- Plymouth Gin
Richard Cobb, Bond Pearce judge and Devon based Partner with the firm, commented:
“We have been delighted by the strength of entries for this exciting new category. This has made our decision in choosing the final three a challenge in itself. We would like to highly commend all of those great businesses who chose to enter and put together such focused submissions.”
“In the end what marked the three finalists out was their ability to successfully combine both a strong and thriving CSR policy with a strong and successful business strategy. It’s about proving that you can get the right balance between these two important elements. All three companies demonstrated this to great effect.”
Bailey Partnership
Established in 1971 the Practice now provides a broad range of Construction Consultancy Services from strategically located offices across the South of the Country serving its clients nationwide. The Practice derives its strengths from a highly skilled and committed team of professionals, with access to the latest technologies. As a privately owned successful company, we believe that it is very important to be committed to Corporate Social Responsibility. Through our community engagement plan we aim to support local causes, foundations, charities, school, initiatives and people who are generally less fortunate that ourselves.
Maurice West, Partner said:
“Bailey Partnership has always believed that it is important to support the communities in which we live. We have worked closely with Business in the Community generally and in particular ‘Plymouth Cares’ since its inception to support local causes of all shapes and sizes. Corporate Social Responsibility is about acting in a responsible manner through all areas of business and forms part of our core working ethos and culture. As a local practice we want to make a difference – and believe that we do!”
Landmark Information Group
Landmark Information Group is the UK’s leading provider of property related geo-spatial and environmental information. They have an unrivalled source of large scale current and historical digital maps, together with high quality environmental risk and planning information. This allows them to provide customers with reliable and trusted solutions, whether they are in the property, environment, conveyancing or government markets.
The company’s head office has been based on the Sowton Industrial Estate in Exeter, Devon since 1995 and currently supports more than 150 personnel. The majority of the business support teams are based in this location including Data, IT Development, IT Services and our specialised geospatial services division, Landmark Solutions. The Exeter site is undergoing a major refurbishment this year to provide more space, cutting edge technology and ensure environmental impact is reduced.
Stephen Stout, Managing Director - Landmark Information Group, says: “We are delighted to have made the shortlist of the CSR category and feel it demonstrates the responsible approach which Landmark takes to developing the company’s relationship with the communities in which it operates.
“While we do of course have a CSR policy which forms the basis for all our activities in this area - we recognise that a policy is not an end in itself and that taking action and getting people involved is key. The Landmark team have been instrumental in achieving successes in all areas including charity fundraising, workplace initiatives and environmental management."
“Our commitment to CSR is also demonstrated in our ability to innovate in the marketplace. Our Exeter team leads the development of new datasets and was responsible for the successful capture of Ordnance Survey's Historical Mapping involving the scanning of over 1 million maps dating back to 1850 and more recently the creation of a unique digital archive of Historical Building Plans.”
Plymouth Gin
Plymouth Gin has been produced at the Blackfriars Distillery on the Barbican, the historic heart of Plymouth, since 1793. Now exported to more than 30 countries it wins international awards for quality and taste. Carrying the name of the city around the globe places a responsibility on the company and as a result, in recent years, it has played a more central role within the business and wider community of the city itself.
Plymouth Gin has been active in working with the business community to drive the economy and development of the city. It has also worked to develop the Barbican in particular into a thriving and vibrant tourism destination. Being one of the larger businesses situated on the Barbican, and one of the oldest established businesses in the city, encouraged the company to support community projects, the arts and to generally work, often in partnership, towards creating a more attractive environment for all in which to live, work and enjoy leisure time.
As a producer and retailer of alcohol the company is also determined to play a leading role in ensuring not only its own products, but all alcohol, is sold and consumed responsibly. It has worked hard with charitable bodies to assist those who have a problem with alcohol. It has worked in close partnership with police and trade bodies to promote and encourage responsible drinking and to remedy those social problems connected with the consumption of alcohol.
Richard Smith, Brand Home Director of Plymouth Gin said:
“We are extremely proud to be finalists in this new category within the Business Challenge Awards. Corporate Social Responsibility is increasingly important to all companies but is especially challenging for those within the alcoholic drinks industry. We have worked hard to establish ourselves at the forefront of these activities within our industry but also we have sought to work within the wider Plymouth community to improve lives and expectations.”
Please note a media pack is available from Liz Morgan (details below).
For more information please contact:
Liz Morgan
Bond Pearce LLP
Tel: 0845 415 6625
Email: liz.morgan@bondpearce.com
