Community spirit firmly rooted and ready to grow

Thu, Sep 20th 2007, 11:47

Two Flintshire businesses have proved that their corporate social responsibility principles are firmly rooted and set to keep growing.

To celebrate, they jointly planted two oak saplings presented to them by Business In The Community to commemorate their success in winning a ‘Big Tick’ in BITC’s  annual Awards for Excellence.

House builder and property developer Redrow plc and De Vere St David’s Park Hotel came together at St David’s Park, Ewloe, to plant the two oak saplings in full view of Redrow’s headquarters and the 147-bedroom hotel.

Redrow earned its Big Tick for its Debut range of affordable homes for first time buyers and was also highly commended as a national example of excellence in the ‘TCS Marketplace Innovation’ category.

De Vere St David’s Park was the first hotel in the UK to receive a Big Tick and earned the prestigious accolade in the ‘Cause Related Marketing’ category of the awards, after  impressing judges with its support for the Wales Air Ambulance.

David Steel, the hotel’s General Manager, said: “We have supported the Wales Air Ambulance for several years, hosting numerous charity events and other fundraising activities to collect in excess of £65,000 so far. The partnership has proved to be a win-win situation for all involved. As well as raising money for the Wales Air Ambulance, our efforts have brought together staff, customers and suppliers to create a fantastic sense of belonging among everyone involved in the hotel.”

Paul Pedley, Redrow’s Executive Deputy Chairman, added: “We were the first of the major residential developers to seriously tackle the issue of helping young first time buyers get onto the property ladder. Thanks to Debut, hundreds of people are now on the first rung of the housing ladder who, previously, just could not afford to own a home of their own. This includes people who bought homes at one of our first Debut developments right here at St David’s Park.

“Planting these two oak saplings is a great way of celebrating our joint success and, as the young trees grow and mature, they will serve as a permanent reminder in years to come of the St David’s Park Hotel’s and Redrow’s commitment to the communities in which we operate.”

The BITC awards, now in their tenth year, recognise companies for integrating responsible business practice into their mainstream operations resulting in a positive impact in the marketplace, environment, community and workplace. For further details visit the website www.bitc.org.uk/awards.