No, your CEO can’t come paint our office: The 4 golden rules for CSR December 2, 2019 Two years ago, I launched Beam, a tech-for-good startup that crowdfunds employment training for homeless people and supports them into stable, paid work. Ever since we started to gain visibility, a number of brands have approached us with different propositions for demonstrating their corporate social responsibility (CSR) agendas. To paint a picture of what these approaches [...]
It’s time for aspiration and ability – not birth and background – to dictate progress July 8, 2019 In the UK, our sense of fair play is a source of national pride. We like to think that if you study hard at school and work hard in employment, opportunities are there for the taking. We are, however, increasingly finding evidence to the contrary. Throughout the country, we see those at the top being [...]
Penny Mordaunt poised to join Conservative leadership contest May 29, 2019 Defence secretary Penny Mordaunt is poised to join the increasingly crowded field of candidates seeking to succeed Theresa May as Prime Minister. In article for the Conservative Home website, set to be published at 9am on Thursday, Mordaunt warns the upcoming leadership contest must not descend into “a fight against competing factions” as she urges [...]
London pulls away from rest of UK in wealth, says first paper in major inequality study May 14, 2019 London has been far more economically productive than the rest of the country over the last two decades while earnings in the capital are much higher than elsewhere, a new study by the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) has shown. Read more: Hammond has the cash to end austerity, IFS says The IFS has today [...]
UK financial services face talent crisis over social mobility and “boring” reputation April 21, 2019 The UK’s financial services sector is facing a talent crisis as would-be employees are put off by its reputation for being “boring”, a new survey has revealed. Research carried out by Big Four auditor KPMG showed 65 per cent of the UK population would not consider taking a job in the financial services sector. Read [...]
The Dragon Awards are on the hunt for London’s most responsible businesses February 18, 2019 In an uncertain time for business and society, it is encouraging to know that so many London-based firms remain dedicated to going the extra mile for their local communities. Businesses are increasingly doing more to benefit society and have the greatest possible impact through their working practices. I regularly meet companies that are championing responsible recruitment [...]
Freelancers are being exploited by businesses that fail to pay their invoices – this damaging culture must change January 22, 2019 There's no such thing as a free lunch – a popular phrase favoured among politicians and business leaders that is used to describe how everything has a cost. Economies are systems of exchange. Whether payment is obvious or more concealed, we know that what we receive requires recompense. Yet when freelancers are involved, we think [...]
January 14, 2019 It’s back to school for students across the country. A new term is always an exciting prospect; pupils and teachers return with renewed energy and a readiness to learn and teach. Last month, Canada Corporation, which sponsors 10 academies in London, was named by the Sutton Trust as the best UK academy [...]
There’s only one way to fix the housing crisis: build more January 9, 2019 From free marketeers on the right to proponents of central planning on the left, cries to fix Britain’s broken housing market have become deafening. The solutions, of course, differ greatly depending on where along the political spectrum you stand. Yesterday, for example, Shelter issued its latest call to action, proposing three million new social homes [...]
Giving to a charity at Christmas is great, but we should think of helping others all year round December 13, 2018 It is nearly Christmas, and it is well known that the theme of the season is the giving of gifts and thinking of others. As a result, it is also a popular time of year for people to give to charity. In fact, data from the Charities Aid Foundation shows that November and December are [...]