Making an Impact
We are committed to making a positive impact for our people, community and planet. We’ve been making a difference for years, but we want to do even more with the team across the Sykes Cottages Family.
Our impact on people and the planet is as important to us as shareholder profit. We’re introducing new ways of working to make a positive social and environmental impact and do our bit to create a cleaner, greener, fairer future for all!
Our Impact Commitments
Reduce our carbon emissions and reach Net Zero as soon as possible before 2050
Work with at least 20 biodiversity projects every year
Become a single use plastic free business by the end of 2024
Inspire and enable 100% of the Sykes family to take part in volunteering every year
Enable 100 disadvantaged families to go on holiday every year
Positively impact at least 10 community and charity initiatives every year
Taking Fundraising to New Heights!
May 2023 saw 65 employees from across the Sykes Cottages family, manned with brave faces, abseil down our six storey Chester Head Office in aid of our Charity Partner of the Year, Hospice of the Good Shepherd. Colleagues from across our Regional Brands and HQ departments, some donned in a range of fancy dress, completed the 79 feet descent raising a whopping £15,000 in the process, matched by the company to a total of £34,000 - a fantastic day for a more than worthy cause!
Proving we can stand the heat
From abseiling to walking on fire, we kicked off 2024 with a Charity Fire Walk at our Chester HQ, where 81 members of the team courageously stepped forward to support the Hospice of the Good Shepherd and our other chosen regional charities. Together, we raised over £19,000 to be shared across all chosen charities, almost double our original target! An amazing effort from our ambitious team making a huge difference to our chosen charities and upping the ante for our next fundraising event...watch this space to see what we tackle next!
Our Sustainability Partnership
Supporting Chester Pride
In keeping with our impact mission to make a positive social impact, we are proud to be the official Sustainability Partner for Chester Pride, which holds great significance to us by combining both an environmental and social mission, alongside advocating for inclusion and equality amongst the LGBTQ+ community!
Our commitment to making an impact
Diversity and Inclusion
Disability Confident Committed
UK for Good
Diversity and Inclusion
We encourage and welcome our people to bring their authentic and best selves to work every day. We know the power that comes from different ideas, backgrounds and perspectives. We recognise the role diversity plays in achieving our goals as a business. We actively welcome applications from as wide a range of backgrounds as possible. If you need any particular support or accommodations as part of your application process, please get in touch - our Recruitment Team are happy to help.
Disability Confident Committed
We are proud to be a Disability Confident Committed company, having pledged to recruiting, retaining and developing the talents of those with disabilities throughout their Sykes journey! Wherever there is a barrier, we pledge to remove it and are ambitious to do more to ensure every disabled person has the opportunity to succeed at work and has the opportunity to prosper.
UK for Good
Gone are the days of short-term profit for shareholders at any cost; we are all about purpose, people, planet and prosperity! As part of this committment we are proud to be a Founding Member of UK for Good, taking stepping stones to sustainable success and working as a wider community of business pledging to solve the world’s greatest social and environmental challenges.
Our Charity Partner of the Year
Our Charity Partner of the Year
Each year, we choose a charity of the year based on colleague nominations and we work together for 12 months to raise as much money as possible, with the company matching every £1 raised! In the past we’ve supported some amazing causes, from MIND to the Teenage Cancer Trust and this year, the Sykes Cottages group are turning our support to The Hospice of the Good Shepherd. With a fundraising abseil already under our belts, watch this space for how our team are pledging their commitment...
Changing the world together
Our sponsorship and employee tree planting days help to protect habitats, promote biodiversity, support local economies and regenerate lost forests. As part of our Impact Initiative, we collaborate with selected partners on large scale planting projects, in areas where we can make the most impact, as well as regional partnerships across the UK to ensure maximum change for good!
