Team effort and community spirit has won ARAMARK’s Southampton Solent University team the first ARAMARK Corporate Responsibility (CR) Incentive Scheme.
The 32-strong catering team, based at the East Park Terrace campus, beat stiff competition from other ARAMARK teams to clinch the award. Launched last year, the scheme encourages teams to focus activities around the four CR pillars of health and wellbeing, employee welfare, environment and community.
Since the launch, staff have been leading innovative projects in the community and introducing simple changes in the workplace, making them one of the UK’s greenest, fittest and happiest workforces.
The Southampton Solent team’s activities have ranged from taking Southampton cub scouts to a local farm to look at where meat comes from, to getting school children to grow and cook their own vegetables.
They’ve collected tins of food for Southampton’s elderly, had chocolate biscuits flown to soldiers in Afghanistan and sent parcels to children in Rwanda.
Closer to home, the team launched a scheme giving placements – and in some cases, jobs - to the long-term unemployed, while organising health checks and gym session for staff, and making huge electricity savings by co-ordinating kitchen equipment switch-offs.
The team was also praised for its commitment to Fairtrade, with the commercial and ethical success of its dedicated Fair Trade cafes and products.
As part of the award, the team was presented with a trophy and £5,000 to donate to their chosen local good causes, including a new stage for Oakwood School, kitchen equipment for Southampton cub scouts, an electric wheelchair for a disabled school pupil and a football trip for a terminally ill youngster.
From left to right: Lindy Jessup, Hospitality Services Manager at Southampton Solent, Dawn Gillespie, Group Support Manager, ARAMARK, Val Carter, CR Director, ARAMARK and Nick Hayter, Group Manager, ARAMARK
Lindy Jessup, Hospitality Services Manager at Southampton Solent, said: “The University has been delighted with the continued enthusiasm and dedication shown by the ARAMARK team on campus in achieving their company’s first Corporate Responsibility Incentive award.
“By participating in this scheme, in partnership with the University, ARAMARK has shown that it fully supports the University’s ethical and sustainable principles.”
Solent Group Support Manager, Dawn Gillespie added: “It’s been incredibly uplifting to be involved in this scheme. We were highly motivated and the team just got stronger and stronger. It’s great to put something back into the community, and to have such a happy workforce.”