SATRO ATTENDING UNUM REPORT LAUNCH AT HOUSE OF COMMONS

Unum are hosting a reception at the House of Commons to launch their report ‘ Making a Difference in Our Communities’ which highlights their extensive Corporate Social Responsibility programme. SATRO members of staff Jules Hall and Dr Beccy Bowden will be attending.  Unum say ‘we believe that helping our communities is a natural extension of the commitment we make each and every day to our customer. The launch of this report is the perfect opportunity to celebrate the charities, educators, voluntary organisations, sportspeople and performers who have inspired us locally and nationally’. Unum sponsor the SATRO Maths Challenge and also a mentoring programme at Therfield School which they support with many volunteers. Beccy Bowden said ‘Unum is an absolute pleasure for a small charity like us to work with because they care about what we do as much as we care – and that means that together we can achieve fantastic things!’

Guest blogger Charlotte Grobien OBE of Give it Away on 'Giving to charities'

Give it Away was formed with the sole purpose of trying to make profits from the property market in order to support a variety of Charities. Since its beginning in 2006, I have built 8 new houses and supported over 12 different Charities.  Building houses is not traditionally a work place where you find an abundance of women but I often think that with a feminine approach to the detail of how a house needs to be finished (and on time) in order to make a good sale, it is an area well suited to us!

In terms of choosing which Charities could benefit from these donations I took a similarly detailed approach.  By researching those who supported children with multiple physical and mental challenges in homes where finance was strained together with finding concerns who mentored young people out of difficulty to face a better future, I formed the basis for Give it Away. Donations are made to “projects” and because I choose the smaller Charities working locally I am able to see exactly how these monies make a difference to many families.

I am a firm believer in trying to create career opportunities for young people and to develop skills and interests they may not know they had so that they are less likely to face a crisis in their formative years.  SATRO do this at a time when there is considerable need for young people to focus on technology and innovation giving them practical experience in a range of related subjects they may never have considered exploring . If this happens to include more young girls taking an interest in non-traditional career roles so much the better – I have not found it a problem!

If I could exhort more people in their middle years to use their valuable experience and resources to “earn” money or offer “time” to help young people find a better future, I will have achieved something!

- Charlotte Grobien, OBE

GIVE-IT-AWAY to make a difference!

Give-It-Away donates £20,000 to support programmes run by SATRO 

Surrey-based charity SATRO is delighted to announce that Charlotte Grobien OBE, a unique and very special social entrepreneur, has stepped up to the challenge of changing young people’s lives by supporting our programmes to inspire them about their future careers.  Charlotte attended St Dunstan’s School, Woking on 15^th June where SATRO were delivering a Junior Business Game and presented her donation  cheque to Beccy Bowden, CEO, SATRO.  Beccy commented “It is an honour to work with someone as inspirational as Charlotte – not only has her donation enabled us to reach many more young people and ensure they take their next steps to a promising career,  I’m sure meeting her will also inspire them to achieve great things! There are many, many young people, even in a county as vibrant as Surrey, who struggle to find their way in life – often unseen and unknown about by the ‘general public’. Everyone at SATRO, staff and volunteers, is passionate about helping them and I'm delighted that all that hard work and determination has been rewarded by Charlotte’s support.”

Give-it-Away is unique in how it raises money for charity – it builds houses, sells them and then gives the profits to charities that fit with Charlotte’s charitable interests.  Charlotte supports small, local charities who work with vulnerable children and young people who have disabilities, learning problems, difficult home backgrounds and where there is also financial deprivation.  Charlotte’s donation will enable SATRO to run the Mobile Construction Classroom at Woodlands School, Leatherhead, support disadvantage students on their extended work placements and enable SATRO to reach out to young people with career and university advice.  She will also sponsor several events which are designed to stimulate and challenge young people and to develop skills in problem-solving, team-working and time management. These are skills which many employers value, especially those in STEM (science, technology, engineering, maths) related industries.

Charlotte commented “I was delighted to meet SATRO recently and to hear about the enormous number of programmes they are running in the Surrey area which benefit young people who may be unable to identify what their role in business and industry could be on leaving school.  By engaging them at a young age in a variety of hands on projects, they are better able to see their future  potential in careers which they may not have thought of.  I was especially pleased to see a construction based challenge!  I am very committed to providing as much positive opportunity as early as possible for young people and am very pleased that my contribution will be put to practical use”.

Why engage with schools? Corporate Social Responsibility - Lucy Miguda

Many companies use SATRO to help them meet their CSR targets by enabling them to engage with their local schools.  In the press we read constantly about employers concern about not being able to find the right kind of staff and students nowadays do not have the problem solving skills or ability to “think outside the box”.  Many of the programmes we run are designed to address these issues and more.  SATRO is an outstandingly effective educational charity which has been working with young people across the south east of England for 30 years and in that time has worked with over 450,000 young people.  We provide real-life experience of the working world particularly in Business, Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths.

We inspire and enthuse young people about their future careers by giving them practical engagement opportunities with the working world throughout their time at school.  We offer bespoke packages to help you meet your CSR requirements for employee engagement:

·         Mentoring programmes

·         One day school events

·         High profile sponsorship opportunities

Last year, our business volunteers contributed 13,831 hours and 100% felt supported by SATRO and they would also volunteer again!  By partnering with SATRO you will be helping bridge the skills gap between education and business whilst engaging your employees.  We can help you:

Raise your community profile

Enhance employee skills

Increase job satisfaction

Attract the next generation of employees

Promote your brand through sponsorship

We provide meaningful data on the impact of your corporate community engagement.  We provide measurable outcomes to demonstrate the difference and impact your engagement has with young people in your area.  We provide rigorous training and DBS checks for volunteers.  We offer many inspiring programmes and we have an excellent record of working very successfully with large and small corporations: Allianz, Legal & General, Unum, Air Products, CISCO, ExxonMobil, Toyota (GB) Plc to name but a few.

Please contact Lucy Miguda, Business Development and Fundraising Manager lucy@satro.org.uk or 01483 688070 for further information