Corporate releases

United Biscuits makes great strides towards community targets

Date: 23-07-2012

Three years after launching its award-winning People & Community programme, United Biscuits (UB) has announced it is well on track towards achieving its ambitious goals for greater employee development, improved health and wellbeing of staff and further involvement in the wider community. 

The People & Community Progress Report 2011 details UB’s efforts and achievements over the past year in the areas of graduate recruitment; school work placements; apprenticeships; establishing Employee Learning Centres at UB factories; developing the workforce through NVQs; increasing Food Science research opportunities for under- and post-graduates; establishing relationships with universities; and reducing Lost Time Accidents at factories. It also highlights the many charitable projects and fundraising initiatives undertaken by our employees. 

Some of our achievements for 2011 are listed below and the full update report can be downloaded at www.unitedbiscuits.com/community.php.

•  With our employees we have donated over £275,000 to charity in funds or product, up from £167,000 in 2010.
•  We’ve granted 186 days leave for our employees to work on community projects.
• Working in conjunction with our unions, we have ensured that all of our factory sites now have an Employee Learning Centre.
• 19% of our UK workforce has completed an NVQ or equivalent qualification since 2009.
• We now have 38 apprentices working across UB sites.
• A further 26 individuals joined our Graduate Recruitment Programme bringing our total number of graduates to 54 throughout the business.
•  We provided 170 summer placements for university students and 65 work experience places for school students
• We reduced our Accident Frequency Rate by a further 13% in 2011.

Benoit Testard, Chief Executive Officer, says:

“I am very proud of the progress we are making with our People & Community Programme, which is making a real difference to both employees within the business, and to the wider communities we serve.”