11 October 2007
Lord Mayor's Dragon Awards reward London businesses with the
ultimate 'helping high' for their excellence in Corporate Community
Involvement
Last night, Lord Mayor John Stuttard awarded London businesses
with the ultimate ‘helping high’ as they picked up prestigious
Dragon Awards to recognise their achievements in Corporate
Community Involvement. Law firms blazed the way with Trowers and
Hamlins, Lovells LLP and Denton Wilde Sapte LLP each winning in
separate categories; Merrill Lynch, London Borough of Barking and
Dagenham and Swanke Hayden Connell Architects were the other
category winners. Individually, Giles Keating of Credit Suisse won
the ‘Volunteer of the Year’ award, having been nominated by his
charity partner, St. Mungo’s.
With the Global Financial Index revealing that the City of
London has recently pulled ahead of New York as the world’s No.1
financial centre, businesses and public offices across London are
choosing to invest their competitive strength and economic wealth
back into the capital by sharing cash, skills and time with
neighbouring community organisations. The Lord Mayor’s Dragon
Awards, now entering their 20th year, have long established the
important impact that Corporate Community Involvement can have,
thereby reinforcing the value of investing back into the
community.
The Dragon Awards were originally set up by the then Lord Mayor
Sir David Rowe-Ham in 1987 and are now one of the most
well-regarded schemes to recognize Corporate Community Involvement.
The awards reveal that competitive compassion can both be good for
the bottom line and for the community, as leading London
corporations and their employees work with their neighbours,
whether through large-scale corporate projects or on an individual
volunteer basis.
The full list of 2007’s Dragon Awards winners are as
follows:
- Education Award: London Borough of Barking & Dagenham -
Looked After Children, Health & Education Support Team
The LACHES Volunteer Mentoring Project provides mentors to young
people in care, training volunteers from all sectors of the
community to support and guide them. The project aims to increase
the self esteem and confidence of this vulnerable, and very often
disadvantaged, group of young people and to support them in
engaging or re-engaging with education, further education and
training. Managed by two full-time borough employees, around 65
dedicated volunteers including care leavers, doctors, retirees, and
students work to enhance the quality of these young people’s lives,
offering invaluable advice, helping them make informed choices and
increasing their life opportunities.
- Economic Regeneration Award: Trowers & Hamlins
Trowers and Hamlins has been involved with East Potential, a
charity working in East London providing accommodation, training
and employment opportunities on its Routes to Work Scheme since
2003. The scheme gives local residents of East London the
opportunity to try a new career path through work experience.
Twelve two-week work placements are run each year, offering a broad
range pf office experience, as well as encouraging responsibility
and a sense of value. Every attendee is allocated a mentor and
given an appraisal at the end of the placement, providing
constructive feedback and advice for the future, and giving the
opportunity to make positive life changes.
- Community & Social Inclusion Award: Lovells LLP
In 1997, Lovells broke new ground by being the first City law firm
to hire a full-time Pro Bono Manager. Ten years on, their Pro Bono
Unit is staffed by over 450 volunteer lawyers and trainee
solicitors, who take part in a diverse range of pro bono activity
including advocacy work, charity advice, human rights and
mainstream corporate matters. In the past 10 years, Lovells has
provided over 120,000 hours of legal advice to thousands of pro
bono clients, not just to individuals but to charities and
voluntary organisations in need who would not otherwise be able to
afford it. They have more recently extended the provision of pro
bono advice beyond the firm’s legal expertise to other support
areas such as HR, IT and PR.
- Heart of the City Award: Denton Wilde Sapte LLP
PopLaw is a free weekly legal clinic established, managed and
staffed by Denton Wilde Sapte, in partnership with LawWorks, Poplar
HARCA and the East London Business Alliance. The clinic is located
in Poplar, East London, one of the most deprived areas of the
country, and provides free legal advice to those who may not
otherwise be able to access or afford it. Volunteers include
partners, solicitors, barristers and trainees, who offer advice on
a range of subjects such as debt, housing, consumer issues,
employment and welfare benefits. Since it was established in
January 2006, PopLaw has advised 669 clients, with 91 volunteers
providing over 1,200 hours of assistance.
- Heart of the City Award: Swanke Hayden Connell Architects
(SME)
In partnership with ‘The Building Exploratory’ charity, the project
aimed to inspire, engage and educate students from Haggerston
School in Hackney and to help them to consider possible future
careers in architecture, construction and the built environment, as
well as to develop an awareness of their local heritage. The weekly
programme of workshops was undertaken by volunteer staff and work
experience students, on a four month project aimed at understanding
design, form, scale and context. Their Grade 2 listed, Erno
Goldfinger-designed 1960s school provided a perfect subject of
architectural study and was used as a learning tool to create a
detailed architectural model.
- Lord Mayor's Award: Merrill Lynch
The Merrill Lynch Responsible Citizenship Programme is an example
of a committed, long-standing, sustainable partnership with schools
and education charities, reflecting the firm’s focus on young
people’s skills, development and economic wellbeing. The programme
encompasses community (schools) and fundraising (education)
initiatives, with the principal philanthropic focus being the
education of young people from socially and economically challenged
communities. Through sponsorship of global education programmes,
1,750 London secondary school students have benefited from studying
world issues, and gaining enterprise and business leadership
skills.
- Volunteer of the Year Award: Giles Keating (Credit Suisse) -
nominated by St. Mungo's
The Dragon Awards are divided into six separate
categories. Three categories celebrate initiatives in Education,
Economic Regeneration and Community and Social Inclusion. The Heart
of the City award is given each year to companies new to community
work and the Lord Mayor’s Award is given to one which has shown
long-term commitment to it. The Volunteer of the Year award
celebrates the outstanding contribution made by one committed
individual.
The Lord Mayor of the City of London John Stuttard says: “The
Dragon Awards are an important way to reward those who are working
hard to give back to their local communities and to set the
standard in neighbourliness for all enlightened Greater London
businesses.”
Ends
Notes to Editors
For more information, or for details about how to participate in
next year’s awards, please contact:
Rosalind Jeffcoat or Louise Ambridge
Rain Communications UK
Tel 020 7222 4345
Email
name.surname@raincommunications.co.uk
The City of London Corporation is the business authority for the
business district and supports the international financial services
industry based in the UK, with its heart in the Square Mile. It
provides local authority services for the Square Mile but also
works across wider London and UK. See more on
/dragonawards
For further information on the 'Volunteer of the Year'
and the award categories read the additional release
below:
‘Volunteer of the Year’ Giles Keating, Credit Suisse gets a
helping high at the 2007 Lord Mayor’s Dragon Awards
Giles Keating from Credit Suisse, has received the ultimate
‘helping high’ by being awarded the prestigious ‘Volunteer of the
Year’ award at this year’s Lord Mayor’s Dragon Awards. Giles
Keating is the driving force behind VoiceMail4All, a project
managed by St. Mungo’s that offers free 0208 voicemail numbers to
homeless people. He was presented with his award by Lord Mayor John
Stuttard at an exclusive banquet on Wednesday 10th October to
celebrate the efforts of the great and the good throughout London
to put something back into their community.
With a recent survey[1] revealing that
more than half of the UK population now gives its time to charity
and the community, volunteering is clearly establishing itself as a
worthwhile activity in which to be involved. The Lord Mayor’s
Dragon Awards, now in their 20th year, have long aimed to establish
the important impact that Corporate Community Involvement can have,
thereby reinforcing the value of investing back into the community.
The ‘Volunteer of the Year’ category gives community organisations,
charities and schools the chance to nominate their business
volunteers for the outstanding voluntary contribution of time and
work that they have put in throughout the year.
Despite long hours at Credit Suisse in the Private Banking
Division, Giles Keating is intimately involved in all aspects of
the project, attending quarterly Steering Group meetings, approving
materials, attending special events and establishing relationships
with potential new funding sources. Giles was responsible for
establishing and running two pilot projects involving 15 homeless
organisations, then securing two years’ funding to establish a live
service. He vigorously encourages Credit Suisse and his fellow
employees to contribute to VoiceMail4All, either financially or
through volunteering.
A spokesperson from St. Mungo’s says, “Giles’ commitment and
championing of volunteering enables some of the most vulnerable and
socially excluded people in London to have a reliable way to stay
in touch with the most important people in their lives. These can
include potential employers, support workers, legal or medical
help, or friends and family. VoiceMail4All has helped countless
people to find work, get into detox programmes, secure housing,
hear important family news and receive messages from doctors and
lawyers.”
Established in 1987 by the then Lord Mayor Sir David Rowe-Ham,
the Lord Mayor’s Dragon Awards is one of the oldest and most well
established schemes to reward companies and public offices across
London for their Corporate Community Involvement initiatives in six
separate categories – Education, Economic Regeneration, Community
and Social Inclusion, Heart of the City, Lord Mayor’s Award, and
Volunteer of the Year.
The awards set a new benchmark for business achievement in the
capital, one which reveals the extent to which London’s wealth is
invested back into the community - whether through management-led
initiatives within international firms or contributions from
committed individuals.
The Lord Mayor of the City of London John Stuttard says: “The
Dragon Awards are an important way to reward those who are working
hard to give back to their local communities and to set the
standard in neighbourliness for all enlightened Greater London
businesses.”
Ends
For more information, or for details about how to participate in
next year’s awards, please contact:
Rosalind Jeffcoat or Louise Ambridge
Rain Communications UK
Tel 020 7222 4345
Email
name.surname@raincommunications.co.uk
2007 Dragon Awards categories
The City of London Corporation is the business authority for the
business district and supports the international financial services
industry based in the UK, with its heart in the Square Mile. It
provides local authority services for the Square Mile but also
works across wider London and UK.
[1] “Helping Out: a national survey of
volunteering and charitable giving,” commissioned by the Office of
the Third Sector to explore people’s views and experiences of
participation in voluntary activity and charitable giving.