Delivering impact with a business charity partnership

8 October 2013

Working together for safer, warmer homes

Christine Tate – Head of Corporate Social Responsibility, British Gas

8th October 2013

Slide 3

British Gas and Shelter entered into a formal partnership in September 2012

Shelter’s history,

expertise, and credibility

around housing

British Gas’ scale, reach , visibility and

practical solutions

Across Britain the Partnership serves over half of Britain’s homes

Slide 4

The Challenge - Private Rented Homes are in a worse physical condition that in all other tenures

11% of private renters said their health has been affected by their landlord not dealing with repairs and poor conditions in their home (872,000 renters).

The number of households

renting privately has doubled since the mid

90s.

35% of homes fail to meet the Government’s Decent Homes

standard for England

18% of people in the PRS

(England) are living in fuel

poverty

Each year there are 40 deaths

from accidental CO poisoning

In 2010, 22 people died as a

result of electrocution and/ or fatal

electric burns suffered at

home

4,000 a year admitted to A&E for CO poisoning

– Wales and England

Together we have the scale and reach to help Tenants & landlords and improve the Private

Rented Homes

Slide 5

British Gas and Shelter: together for better homes for Britain

1.

Improving 1 million home

s in the Private

Rented Sector

1.

Improving 1 million home

s in the Private

Rented Sector

2.

Reach vulnerable

clients – extend

access to advice

4.

Engage employees to

drive the understandin

g of the Partnership

5.

Joint Policy & Comms –

Campaigning for

Improvements in the PRS

5.

Joint Policy & Comms –

Campaigning for

Improvements in the PRS

3.

Engage Consumers to increase brand reach

of both Organisation

s

The Initial phase of the partnership has helped to refine our objectives to focus on:

Slide 6

1. Transforming one million homes in the PRS

• Safety– Meet gas and electrical safety standards in the home

– Developing landlord offers to make sure renters live in safe homes

– e.g. Gas safety certificates, carbon monoxide detectors

• Warmth– Make sure families renting their homes privately can benefit from our ECO and Green

Deal programmes, making homes more energy efficient

– Referrals from Shelter

• Renter advice– Help renters feel empowered and understand their rights and how to resolve problems

through the use of British Gas channels

• Landlord Advice– Provide advice to smaller landlords to ensure they meet their responsibilities

Slide 7

2. Reaching Vulnerable Customers: British Gas Energy Trust

Supporting and providing advice for those faced with debt issues

•Set up of hubs in 2 high multi deprivation index cities

•Set up rural outreach

•Create Referral Process across Shelter’s client and BG channels

Supporting and providing advice for those faced with debt issues

•Set up of hubs in 2 high multi deprivation index cities

•Set up rural outreach

•Create Referral Process across Shelter’s client and BG channels

Slide 8

3. Raise awareness of the partnership with our 12 million customers

To increase brands reach of both Organisations, building awareness, trust and loyalty amongst key audiences and fundraising for Shelter where appropriate.

Slide 9

4. Engaging our 30,000 employees

94% awareness of partnership amongst employees

Fundraising5 year target of £1 million through employee engagement

£175,000 raised after year one

• First Hour donation campaign

• Wardrobe Relief

• Great North Run, Dead to Red Cycle challenge

Volunteering3000 employees volunteering 30,000 hours of their time over

5 years

• Adopt a shop initiatives

• A full programme of volunteering opportunities in development

Slide 10

5. Joint Communications and Campaigning to Improve higher standards in the private rented sector

• Safety to be improved

• Ensuring homes are warm and efficient

• Support accreditation Schemes

• Supporting Landlords with advice and expertise

• Provide Advice to Renters

Slide 11

Some of the lessons both British Gas and Shelter have learnt from the Partnership

1. Be clear on partner objectives from the outset

2. Understand each other’s cultures

3. Importance of a governance structure to allow for co-creation

4. Developing KPIs for each strand of work

5. Innovation is required to meet commercial as well as social, economic and environmental needs

© British Gas Trading Limited 2013

Slide 12

Thank you.

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