CSR and the environment

In our increasingly pressured modern world, it is important for businesses to practice some form of corporate social and environmental responsibility with the goal of contributing to the wellbeing of the communities and society they affect and on which they depend.

Corporate Social Responsibility is a “management concept whereby companies integrate social and environmental concerns in their business operations and interactions” (unido.org).

At Sellick Partnership, our CSR strategy stems naturally from our core values – and we are passionate about how our business can make a real, positive difference to the environment around us. The guidelines that we have in place for our internal and external activities ensure that we can achieve a balance of economic, environmental and social imperatives.

In this blog I wanted to share some of the things that we do and offer ideas to individuals and businesses out there because together we can make a difference.

Community

Since first establishing in 2002, giving back to the community has always been a priority of Sellick Partnership. Across the UK we work with a wide range of regional and national charities, including: St Ann’s Hospice, me&dee and the Lord’s Taverners, among others.

Each year our staff can use one paid day to volunteer in the community. This is something that some of our clients offer too and is a great way to encourage staff to get involved in helping the community.

We run various charity sporting events which are a fun and collaborative way to get involved. For instance, last month we ran our 10th annual Midlands Charity Football Tournament in aid of the fantastic charity, me&dee.

There are so many ways for business, groups and individuals to give back to the community. It can even be anything from an adrenaline-inducing skydive to a relaxed group walk or even a tasty office bake sale. Smalls things go a long way too, for example we donate the money from our office tuck shop to St. Ann’s Hospice.

Charity fundraising is something we are very passionate about at Sellick Partnership and with such easy and fun ways to get involved, it’s a great way to give back to the community. Halloween is coming up and a charity bake sale is just one example of ways to fundraise for charity. Lots of our clients also do charity bake sales, ‘talk and tea’ sessions and charity runs in aid of charities they are passionate about.

Environment

We are acutely aware that climate change is unequivocally the result of human activity since the mid-20th century and is continuing at an unprecedented rate (IPCC, 2021). Businesses need to take responsibility to reduce these impacts moving forward.

At Sellick Partnership we are passionate about doing our bit to help the environment. We reduce waste as much as we can by having recycling bins around the offices and social spaces, and working paperless wherever possible.

When it comes to commuting, we encourage car sharing, cycling and the use of public transport. We have now also adopted a hybrid way of working so our staff often work from home which really reduces our carbon footprint. We have an accountability task every month to make sure everyone in the company is taking steps to reduce their carbon footprint.

The little things really add up, from turning off the lights and computers after a day at work in the office or at home, to having reusable items such as plates, cutlery and water bottles. Our staff have reduced plastic use by using Sellick Partnership canvass tote bags when going to the shops, and some of our teams are trying out meat-free days in efforts to reduce global emissions!

Most of these community and environmental activities are things that everyone can do and get involved in. Many of our clients are also working really hard to cut back on waste, and have paperless and no-printing policies.

Some clients have been working with arms-length organisations and environmental companies to assess how to lower their carbon footprint and increase their positive impact on the community. Most of our legal clients have all moved towards online case management systems so there is no more need to have so many paper files.

Why not give it a go or suggest a new idea to your team?

We are always happy to hear ideas for new ways that we can continue supporting the community and environment, so if you have any suggestions please contact our Charity Champions by emailing charitychampions@sellickpartnership.co.uk.