Corporate social responsibility at SECOM
At SECOM we understand the importance of corporate social responsibility (CSR). As a market leader in security, we want to light the way in being accountable for our actions as a business. This is demonstrated through our commitment to our own values, our stakeholders’ beliefs and our customers’ high standards.
Positive corporate citizenship requires a proactive approach to social, economic and environmental issues. This begins with being a responsible employer and extends out to the wider community to ensure we are making a beneficial impact wherever we operate. CSR is at the heart of everything we do.
Protecting people
We are in the security industry, so keeping people safe is what we do. We have provided personal safety alarms to a wide variety of groups from lone workers to Girl Guides. These discreet devices may be small enough to fit on a keyring but make a loud enough noise to be a convincing deterrent. Just carrying one offers a greater sense of security and confidence in public.
SECOM has been working with Child Safety Media on its Junior Citizen Child Safety programme. This initiative aims to teach children aged 10 to 11 years old about a wide range of common dangers. These include hazards as diverse as gas and electricity, railways, and drugs. The interactive safety workshops cover many topics and issues that are not included in the curriculum.
They also advise on the actions to take in the event of an emergency, such as a fire or being in difficulty in the water. Demonstrations on making a 999 call also offer valuable insight into staying calm and what information the caller is expected to provide. As well as a certificate to demonstrate participation, each of the children also receives an information booklet to use as reference in the future.
During the pandemic, SECOM tackled loneliness in the elderly, calling each of its CareTech customers on Christmas Day to wish them the best for the festive period. We worked with our charity partner Independent Age to offer advice and support in combating loneliness and maintaining purpose in life.
SECOM encourages its employees to take part in wellbeing awareness events, such as World Mental Health Day, Bring Your Child to Work Day and International Women’s Day. These occasions represent an important opportunity to take stock of the issues that are important to our colleagues and pull together as a community of dedicated workers.
Work in the local community
A Special Birthday Surprise for a Young Fire Alarm Enthusiast
We were contacted at SECOM HQ by Jenna Neale. Jenna explained to our marketing team that it was her son’s birthday coming up, and that due to his autism, he does not play with toys or have any interest in games, he just loves fire alarms and has an intense interest in alarms and how they work. Jenna even sent us some fantastic pictures of the alarms they have made together. Jenna was trying to put together a birthday surprise for her son, to make his birthday as special as possible, so asked if we had any old or recycled alarms that are no longer in use that they could possibly purchase as they are making him an alarm board to go with his collection.
Our Senior Management Team were really touched by Jennas message and her son’s love and passion for fire alarms, so Jonathan Bent our UK Product Manager and Martin Harrold our General Manager for UK South Installation got together a collection of fire alarms and fire kit to surprise Jenna and her son with. We got everything together and drove down in our SECOM Van the day before his birthday to deliver it, with Martin Harrold and Martin Dobb our Fire Project Manager delivering it in person! We were so pleased to have been able to make Jenna’s son, Ralphys birthday, that much more special.
Child Safety Media
In its third year of partnership with Child Safety Media, SECOM plc is one of two businesses providing vital funding that allows Child Safety Media to run the Tandridge Junior Citizen Event. This event, which SECOM is proud to support, underscores the company’s commitment to enhancing child safety in the local community.
As a provider of security services, we based our safety workshop around staying safe whilst home alone, as children around that age will start to experience being home alone more, and fire safety. We also raised awareness of the different types of security services we offer and opened up discussions about the types of security they have encountered. You can read more about the experience here.
Our workshops were given by our SECOM staff who kindly volunteered and quite enjoyed doing something different from their day-to-day work to give back to the community and be part of something positive. We would like to thank those who volunteered for making the event a great success as we received really positive feedback. Satoru Awano, our Managing Director, commented, “SECOM is proud to be sponsoring the Child Safety Media event, as we recognise the crucial importance of empowering Year 6 children during their transition to secondary school. We are committed to providing valuable safety tips to ensure they are equipped to navigate their newfound independence confidently. Together, we will foster a safer environment for the future generation.”
Fundraising for charity
When it comes to fundraising for charity, we have adopted a multi-pronged approach. Not only does SECOM get involved with local and national events, but we also hold our own charity days and activities to spread awareness of important causes and raise valuable funds. They say that charity begins at home and our committee selects organisations that have a particular link to our employees and the issues that have affected them.
Over the years SECOM has supported and continues to support charities in a wide range of areas. They include:
- Victim Support
- Great Ormond Street Hospital
- Comic Relief
- Children in Need
- Jeans for Genes
- Macmillan Cancer Support
We sponsor events, hold raffles, stage dress down days, organise charity cake and book sales, compete in quizzes and run corporate activities in honour of deserving causes.
Our annual Christmas fundraising raffle featuring prizes donated by SECOM and our suppliers always draws lots of support. All of this as well as attending fundraisers held by others that benefit worthy causes.
Every Christmas we hold an open house lunch and raffle to fundraise for Victim Support. The charity shares our company ethos: ensuring people are and feel safe, and to help build a life after crime. We raised an amazing £2370 in 2022 and in 2023 we raised over £2,900. We raffled off over 50 gifts and prizes to win, with some fantastic prizes donated from SECOM PLC, in particular our Star Prize of £500 Airbnb Vouchers! Plus the chance to win 5 days of extra annual leave, gift vouchers, Fitbit, Christmas hampers along with over 20 gifts from some of our wonderful partners and suppliers like spa breaks, an iPad, AirPods, gift vouchers, smart doorbells, gift hampers and more.
SECOM was delighted to be invited to the annual Whitbread Premier Inn and Restaurant GOSH charity event on 28th September 2022 to raise money for Great Ormond Street Hospital, which we have supported for many years.
Our contributions have helped with the progress of several projects at the hospital in London. The finale to the day was a Gala Dinner where everyone was encouraged to bid for prizes, along with a bingo competition, contributing as much as possible to this incredible charity.
Working towards Net Zero
SECOM Plc has been awarded the EcoVadis Gold Standard, placing us in the top 5% of companies worldwide for sustainability.
EcoVadis is one of the world’s leading providers of business sustainability ratings and evaluates companies around the globe based on their environmental impact, labour & human rights practices, ethics, and sustainable procurement. This achievement reflects the dedication of our team to meet rigorous standards and prioritise sustainability in our partnerships.
A big thank you to our incredible Compliance Team, whose hard work and dedication made this possible. In 2023 we achieved the silver standard with a score of 62%, so to achieve the gold standard by hitting 78% is a fantastic achievement.
Respecting the environment
Our fleet of almost 400 vehicles is essential for fitting and servicing security
and fire safety systems. As part of our drive to become more sustainable,
we are transitioning to self-charging hybrid vehicles from Toyota.
Without cutting down on performance, these cars and vans switch
seamlessly between electric power and petrol.
The innovative self-charging hybrid battery is topped up when braking or coasting, preventing the need to plug it in. Moving to hybrid technology means you can be sure your SECOM engineer is travelling to you in a more environmentally friendly fashion and contributing to a greener future.
We have also committed to cutting down on unnecessary journeys, with the introduction of our remote resolution team. SECOM saved 248 tonnes of CO2 emissions from our vehicles in 2022 by servicing and resolving issues with customers’ systems remotely.
Overall, we have cut 24.5 tonnes of CO2 from being released into the atmosphere by our fleet and 96.5 per cent of our vehicles are Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) compliant. At SECOM we are determined to build on these credentials in the future, making sustainable choices to benefit us all.
We have recently achieved a silver rating with EcoVadis, a well-known sustainability rating and assessment platform that evaluates organisations based on their sustainability practices and corporate social responsibility efforts, focusing on environmental, social, and ethical performance.
EcoVadis assesses companies in various areas, including environmental impact, labour and human rights practices, ethical business conduct, and sustainable procurement. The goal is to help companies measure and improve their sustainability performance, as well as provide transparency for their customers and partners.
Many companies use EcoVadis ratings to assess and compare the sustainability performance of their suppliers and partners. It has become a valuable tool in promoting sustainability and responsible business practices in various industries. We are proud of our rating and are committed to continuously improve our efforts to create a more sustainable future.
SECOM Training Academy
At SECOM, we have invested in developing our own engineers through our own Ofsted approved National Training and Development Centre of Excellence (NTDC).
The NTDC offers apprenticeships and up-skilling opportunities to SECOM staff, as well as differentiated teaching resources, audio-visual capability, and distance learning opportunities.
Our structured pathway ensures that apprentices can develop the skills, knowledge, and behaviour they need to succeed in the security industry. We are committed to training our staff to the highest standards and keeping them at the forefront of emerging technologies.
The charities SECOM have supported
