While Sigma is committed to corporate social responsibility, we had little idea in January just how much we’d achieve during 2023. What follows is just a snapshot of what we have done with the help of our colleagues, local charities and other supportive organisations.

Sigma started 2023 with a focus on health and training. Our involvement with the Diabetes Safety Organisation Charter (DSOC) saw team members attending a DSOC webinar in November 2023 to deepen their understanding of the disease, with following training sessions for site-based colleagues; that took place on how to use installed hypo boxes at Sigma sites.

We also sponsored the New Employer of the Year Award during National Apprenticeship Week, in collaboration with the Heart of Yorkshire Education Group. This event celebrated the contributions of apprentices and businesses in shaping young people’s careers, and we were proud to present the winners, Fairfield Homes (Northern) Limited, with their well-deserved award.

As the year moved on, we began supporting the Lighthouse Construction Industry Charity which does incredible work promoting mental, physical and financial wellbeing in the construction community. The charity has been instrumental in developing an online portal that helps companies develop a positive mental health culture. Since then, we have been using this support to make a difference with our colleagues.

Our first Sigma One Event of the year was a great success. A day of collaboration and shared vision, colleagues were presented with the company’s mission, vision and future direction, and even got the chance to step into the CEO’s shoes for a day.

As part of our commitment to this year’s International Women’s Day, we called on the services of Blossom Training and Development who kindly provided a self-defence class, which, aside from defence, also helped with mental health and wellbeing.

Around the same time, we continued our support of the local community by delivering over 20 laptops to St George’s Crypt in Leeds. The Crypt provides invaluable support and emergency accommodation for the homeless and the laptops will help those going through drug and alcohol rehabilitation to set up email accounts, access GPs, create CVs and apply for benefits, accommodation and jobs.

Following the postponement of our second Sigma One Event due to the weather, we donated the food preordered for the event to the Hope Centre Trinity Mission, who kindly distributed it to the vulnerable and elderly. As a result of this, the Hope Centre has become one of our supported charities and we have been doing further work with them since.

As we got to late spring, Sigma was awarded silver EcoVadis recertification. Maintaining this important status highlights our commitment to and continued improvement in sustainability and corporate social responsibility. We are proud to be in the top 82 percentile of assessed companies and have increased our score by 17 points since our last assessment.

Late May saw Mental Health Awareness Week and this year, we explored the activities our colleagues do outside of work to help with their mental health. Meanwhile, our Mental Health First Aiders refreshed their training with Mental Health First Aid England while the Lighthouse Club Construction Industry Charity App has been made available on work phones.

Our ongoing support for the Trinity Mission continued throughout the summer and this included a visit to witness the vital work they do, including the provision of food and clothing banks to mental health support. During the visit, we reaffirmed our commitment to the charity.

Our latest CSR Report came out in September, and this highlighted our ongoing commitment to ethical, moral and sustainable practices. The document underpins Sigma’s values and dedication to making a positive impact on our employees, customers, community and environment.

As autumn continued, we also took our first steps at using new technologies. Firstly, we started using drones to help our teams carry out surveying and inspection work more safely and with increased accuracy and efficiency, especially in high-risk areas like asbestos roofs. We then transitioned to lithium-ion battery-powered forklift trucks at our Alpine facility. These have been deployed elsewhere in the group for over a year and bring financial and operational benefits while contributing towards our sustainability goals.

October saw both the World Mental Health Day and the World Menopause Day. On the former, “Tea and Talk” sessions took place across our sites, providing teams with vital information and support, while for the latter, we provided a webinar about menopause and encouraged all colleagues to take part in an awareness campaign.

As the nights drew in and winter approached, our December Sigma One Event had a seasonal theme, with colleagues venturing to the SnoZone in Castleford. Meanwhile, our teams helped light up Leeds Minster for the city’s annual Light Night festival, while our colleagues donated much-needed clothing to the Clothing Bank.

Overall, Sigma has had a successful year in terms of our corporate social responsibility. We have made great strides in supporting our colleagues with their health and wellbeing, we have contributed to the excellent work done by charities and organisations within our region, and we have embraced safer and more environmentally friendly technologies. Of course, our heartfelt thanks go to everyone within and without the company who has helped play a part. We would like to wish our colleagues, clients and the charities and organisations we work with all the best for the season and a happy and successful 2024.