Clarion Housing

Students from a London school shown potential for a career in construction thank to careers day held by EQUANS.

Joined by staff from Clarion as well as our partner contractor, Wates, Social Value Manager for EQUANS, Julian Sanz, visited students at the Hatch End High School in Harrow in June, to deliver a careers day to showcase the potential employment opportunities within the construction industry.

Makeda Christie, a colleague of Julian's, who lives locally to the school kindly offered to talk to Year 7 and 8 students about her own career path, as well as the variety of career opportunities available at EQUANS.

Makeda and the other presenters made it clear that it is rare to have a career path that is straightforward, as often when you are young you may not know what you want to do ext. Makeda explained that in this situation, it's important to always be aware of the various opportunities open to you and to try something which interests you as you never know where you may end up working.

The session was a great way to introduce students to the world of work as well as;

• Broaden and raise career aspirations
• Help students have a better understanding of different routes into careers
• Build confidence
• Help to make a smooth transition between school and employment or further education

Earlier this month, students from the Cawston Primary School in Norfolk, received a special assembly from EQUANS to highlight the dangers posed from live construction sites.

Joined by members of the South East & East regional EQUANS team including Karen Newell, Mark Rule and Frances Harvey, Social Value Manager, Julian Sanz delivered a very special assembly to school children from Cawston Primary School to highlight the dangers of construction sites and the importance of not playing on or near them.

With EQUANS currently carrying out planned investment works in the area, it's a priority for EQUANS to deliver these special talks to local schools to ensure the safety of children, parents and residents as well as the general public.

Delivered on 16th June, the assembly included a short video an interactive safety clothing Q&A session and a poster competition to get the children thinking about safety around construction sites.

Julian will return to the school in a number of weeks to judge the poster competition entries and declare the winner of a special art prize.

In June, the communal garden at a supported living block was improved due to repairs to the raised beds carried out by EQUANS.

Thanks to a number of volunteers from EQUANS, the raised planter beds within the communal garden at George Downing House in Plymouth have been repaired, significantly improving the appearance of the garden for residents.

A few years back the Clarion Neighbourhood Investment Team, asked EQUANS if we could install raised beds at George Downing House and the works were undertaken as part of our social value commitments for Clarion. The raised beds have been used to their full potential over the last few years by the residents and they have made them their own by painting them in vibrant colours, growing all sorts in them.

Many of the residents take a lot of pride in the communal garden areas that they have and the gardens surrounding the flats are always vibrant and full of colour.

More recently it was noticed that the raised beds needed some work to keep them together so that residents could continue to use them in the coming years. Volunteers from EQUANS kindly took time out of their busy schedules and used their staff volunteering days to undertake the necessary repairs.

One resident from George Downing House was particularly delighted with the renewed planters saying, "A good job done, I'm looking forward to painting them with the paint I bought with the vouchers received from EQUANS, thank you."

"It was great to be able to update the raised beds for the residents. They get so much enjoyment out of gardening and it creates a great community spirit and brings everyone together." Karen Jones, EQUANS Resident Liaison Officer and Volunteer

As part of EQUANS' work with Clarion in Norwich, a number of residents have taken the time to provide some positive feedback about the works carried out to their homes.

"Upon completion of the building and renovation work of our property, we have found the difference in temperature in the evenings to be vastly improved. The sound and noise from outside is reduced. Passers-by remark at how bright and clean the new look is.

"The workers were polite and friendly. They were consistent of health & safety regulations. Management were respectful in every way. Problems and delays were reported to us as appropriate. Thank you for all your hard work. Definitely recommend the work for other households." Resident of Edinburgh Drive, Wisbech

"Since the bungalow has been insulated and cladded I hold the heat in more. Most days it's at 23, in temperature so I don't have the heating on very often. Electric has gone down to about £120 a month, my first bill was £300 per month!" Resident of Richmond Green, Gorefield

Whilst UK Power Networks (UKPN) were on site at Churchill Road in Wisbech repositioning the power cables as part of our decarbonisation works, the residents at 15 Churchill Road asked if we could chop the tree at their property, as it was too close to the power cable. UKPN were happy to assist and cut the tree below the height of the power cable at no cost to the resident. The resident was extremely happy.

"Very happy with the people who put in the new windows and doors. They covered all my floors so there was no damage and they cleaned up when finished." Resident of Richmond Green, Gorefield

"A super team! Fast, efficient and friendly. The standard of work was impressive and respect for my property was appreciated. Left my kitchen and bathroom very clean and tidy. The finished work was exceptional. Very impressed and highly recommend." Resident of Richmond Green, Gorefield

As part of EQUANS' work with Clarion in Borehamwood, a number of residents have taken the time to provide some positive feedback about the works carried out to their homes.

Initially a resident from Belford Road was unhappy as the asbestos team failed to arrive on two occasions, but thanks to the site team, especially Taryn, we had a happy ending with the resident commenting: "I'm very happy with the work that's been carried out. Taryn has been very helpful. Thank you for all the help." Resident of Belford Road, Borehamwood

A resident from Maydwell Lodge was extremely anxious at the start of the works, but thanks to Resident Liaison Officer, Taryn and the team keeping her constantly updated she managed to have her kitchen works completed, commenting: "I am happy with the kitchen, Taryn was very nice and kept in touch with me during the works. The builders did a good job and I'm very pleased with the result." Resident of Maydwell Lodge, Borehamwood

Alongside Clarion staff, EQUANS staff have been volunteering their time to assist Clarion Futures in the delivery of their Digital Inclusion sessions for residents.

Over the past six months 12 of our staff have been attending sessions on smart phone use, laptops and tablets and have so far helped more than 100 Clarion residents!

Most recently, Senior Business Development Manager, Andrew Troop and his son Paul, generously volunteered their time to attend the latest Clarion Digital Inclusion session to help offer support to residents learning about the digital world.

During the session residents took a closer look at Spotify, eBay, YouTube, general use of devices and even Tik Tok!

"This has been such a fantastic experience, the wide ranging requests for support really took me back. We had a gentleman who could no longer speak due to mouth cancer so his only means of communicating with his family who live abroad is digitally. Then a lady who wanted to do her shopping online due to mobility issues, and so many more. I highly recommend any EQUANS staff wanting to volunteer, to sign up to the scheme." Andrew Troop, Senior Business Development Manager for EQUANS

The Advice Store in Basildon recently received free redecoration works thanks to volunteers from EQUANS.

Earlier in May, Social Value Manager, Julian Sanz was joined by Learning and Development Officer, Suzanne Bingham and four trainees and graduates to spend a few days painting some of the rooms at the store.

The rooms being redecorated will be used to provide employment support and guidance to local job seekers.

Supply Chain Partner, Dulux also supported the event by supplying all the required paint free of charge.

A week later, Julian returned with five more trainees and apprentices as well as Senior Business Development Manager, Gary Spicer where they were able to complete the redecoration of two training and meeting rooms, the hallway and the kitchen.

In partnership with Clarion and Transforming Local Communities, EQUANS has launched a brand new initiative called 'Safe at Home' to help support survivors of domestic abuse.

As part of our work with the Employers Domestic Abuse Covenant, the initiative will provide practical life saving help to victims of domestic abuse by providing a free donation and installation of a security camera and lighting in an effort to help reduce the risk of post separation abuse and harassment.

For those who need to be re-housed due to the severity of their abuse, EQUANS also offers free redecoration works to two rooms and up to £100 in fixtures and fittings within their new home.

Working with Yvonne Ogden from Clarion Housing, Social Value Manager for EQUANS, Julian Sanz, was able to utilise part of our social value budget to help fund this new initiative. In addition, Stacy Bradley from Transforming Local Communities is not only a brave abuse survivor herself, but the brains behind this fantastic idea.

"The end of a relationship can see an escalation in abuse. Through installing cameras and security lighting, we can help you feel safe at home." Stacy Bradly, Survivor and Director of Transforming Local Communities

For more information, and to get help through the scheme, please contact Julian Sanz on 07795 194 449. If you'd prefer to speak to a female employee, please email Julian at julian.sanz@equans.com with your contact details and Stacy from Transforming Local Communities will call you back at a convenient time.

In May, EQUANS' Social Value Manager, Julian Sanz, arranged for a number of volunteers to help undertake redecoration works to the new home of care leavers.

When the Government launched the Care Leaver Covenant (CLC) in 2018 as part of their 'Keep on Caring' strategy, EQUANS was the first Signatory Member, committing to supporting young people leaving care to become independent. Although EQUANS initially pledged to provide training and employment skills, mentoring, and job opportunities, it quickly became apparent that we could help care leavers further in their transition to independence.

Recognising the expectation for young care leavers to be fully independent once they turn 18, EQUANS has been providing practical support through our bespoke 'Helping Hands' initiatives. As part of our initiative, resources, materials and tradespersons are donated to carry out practical repairs and improvements to help care leavers in their first new home.

On 4th May, Julian was joined by volunteers from EQUANS, where they helped care leavers, Laura and Carla decorate their new property.

They redecorated the lounge and kitchen, giving everything a good clean as they went. Our supply chain partners, Dulux Decorator Centre also generously donated all the required paint.

In April, EQUANS provided free first aid training to residents from Newton Le Wilows.

A major focus of our social value work is to strengthen communities by offering opportunities for employment and training. Our bespoke employment skills plan for Clarion sets out an aim to engage and support residents through work placements, job training and apprenticeships and ENGIE is working in partnership with Clarion Futures, the charitable trust at the heart of Clarion, to deliver this.

All training courses are accredited and industry recognised and delivered through ENGIE's in-house Learning and Development Centre of Excellence Team.

The first aid course covers a range of topics including typical site hazards and how to control them, occupational health, protective wear and equipment, manual handling, working at height, individual responsibilities, practical standards for site safety and legal requirements and liabilities.

As part of our social value commitments to Clarin, EQUANS provides access to over 2,000 accredited training spaces every year!