KCOM in the Community Bigger than broadband
Page 2 | KCOM in the Community For us, it’s bigger than broadband – it’s about helping the communities we serve to become happier, healthier, and more prosperous places to live We’ve been part of the fabric of Hull and East Yorkshire since 1904 and through our KCOM in the Community programme we want to help make life in the region better than ever. We’re not just another company ‘giving back’ – we’re from here. We live and raise families here. That’s why we support and get involved in the causes and events that matter most to local people and businesses. This brochure looks into some of the good stuff we've been up to recently.
KCOM in the Community | Page 3 “KCOM is more than just a broadband company, it’s an essential part of the fabric of our region that’s been woven into the history and heritage of Hull and the surrounding area for the past 120 years. “What makes KCOM special is that our customers aren’t just customers – they’re our friends, family and neighbours, and that’s why we’re so committed to supporting the communities that we serve. “It’s a huge privilege to be able to give something back to the many vital community groups, schools, colleges, sporting clubs, and charities that make life better for many people in our region. We're proud that KCOM continues to make a difference in partnership with these organisations. “We don’t just rely on handing out grants, our employees love to get involved through volunteering and taking an active role in the community projects we support – and that’s something only a local company with strong local roots can do, and will continue to do for the next 120 years!” Tim Shaw, CEO, KCOM Our Community Calendar Community grants* January, April, July, October Safer Internet Day February KCOM Foundation awards March, September Humber STEM events June, September Hull Pride July Freedom Festival September WiME October Festive Giving December The KCOM community team are always on the go, here are some of the key dates in the annual community calendar: *Dates can fluctuate
Page 4 | KCOM in the Community How do I apply for a grant? Please fill out our community grants application form. This can be found by visiting the below URL or scanning here KCOM.com/communitygrants With funding of up to £1000 per group, our community grants scheme really makes a difference to those groups that have such a positive impact on life in our region. Check out the map to see just some of the groups who have benefitted across our region. Who can apply for a grant? We welcome applications* from charities, community groups, and schools in Hull, East Yorkshire, or North Lincolnshire where KCOM services are available or being installed. What can the grant be used for? The grant must be used to benefit people living in our region. It can be used for specific purchases like sports or IT equipment, or to help fund big projects like building repairs. Grants must be used within six months of being awarded. Who decides if your application is successful? Our community grants panel is made up of KCOM employees who live and work in the region. We meet four times a year to consider every application. Our community grants give local causes a helping hand through challenging economic times
KCOM in the Community | Page 5 Market Weighton Pocklington Howden Hook Crowle Goxhill Hull Epsworth Struton Messingham Hibaldstow Driffield Nafferton Beverley Repair Centre The Beverley group used their £500 grant to invest in tools and equipment which their menders use in their workshop. The Warren The group in Hull received a £1000 grant and used this to buy VR headsets. Westwoodside School The school used the grant to buy a buddy bench to help reduce social isolation and encourage friendship-building during break times.
Page 6 | KCOM in the Community Connecting more communities in our region We’re passionate about creating faster and more reliable broadband for everyone in our region. That’s why in 2020, we invested £100k into expanding our full fibre network across East Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire. Today, we’ve connected more than 50,000 homes and businesses in these areas, many of which are rural or remote communities. We have connected rural community hubs by installing complimentary ultrafast fibre in villages halls such as Epworth, Wrawby and Kirton-in-Lindsey and East Cottingwith. This has created focal points for groups, places for people to meet and breathed new life into local communities. We’ve also connected Epworth's ‘The Shed On the Isle’ to full fibre broadband; opening up opportunities for the group to do more great work in enabling men to improve their mental wellbeing while increasing digital inclusion.
KCOM in the Community | Page 7 Now we’re reaching more customers in wider parts of East Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire we’ve broadened our outreach work to ensure those communities get to experience some of our KCOM good stuff. These have included: Partnering with North Lincs UTC on curriculum based activities such as Fibre Splicing lessons. We also helped kit out their Sixth Form common room with new furniture Providing chess sets for schools in Bridlington, Goxhill and Nafferton as part of our Online KCOM Schools Chess League Helping out Crown Community Centre in Bridlington. In 2023 we donated laptops, IT engineer time and a large quantity of desks to help the Crown Community Centre create a new digital hub for the Bridlington community.
Page 8 | KCOM in the Community Working in Partnership with Our long-standing community partnerships enable us to deliver real social impact. We share common values with a core mission to improve the lives of people living and working in our region. Some of our main partners include: From volunteering at community events, to giving away free football kits and helping to inspire the next generation, we work closely with our partners on a wide range of community initiatives. Keep reading to find out a little more about the work we do.
KCOM in the Community | Page 9 Photo page
Page 10 | KCOM in the Community Our Partners: Hull City As Hull City’s Official Community Partner, we’re proud to team up with the Tigers to deliver a range of community initiatives benefiting people across the region. Each season we give away over 5,000 tickets to local community groups, schools and our loyal customers, as well as rewarding our fantastic employees and their families. As part of our sponsorship, we are able to facilitate exciting events for the community at the stadium. As a football club we have a responsibility to be active in our local community and we are fortunate that we have partners like KCOM who are committed to working alongside us, to provide opportunities and experiences for the people of Hull, the East Riding and further afield. Now, as our official Community Partner and for many years as our Stadium Naming Rights Partner, but also in their day-to-day work, KCOM have really stepped up to be at the forefront of community engagement in this area. Joe Clutterbrook, CCO, Hull City ” “
KCOM in the Community | Page 11 KCOM Kits Our Hull City community partnership also includes the highly successful KCOM Kits scheme. This sees a full Umbro strip donated to a local youth team every time The Tigers score a goal at home. Junior teams from across Hull, East Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire have benefitted from a new KCOM kit over recent years. We have donated full kits to over 100 teams so far!
Driving digital inclusion across the Humber region Our Partners: Hey Smile Foundation Digital Inclusion covers digital skills, accessibility and connectivity that are vital for people to be able to access services and use digital devices. As a local company, we don’t want anyone to be left behind in a digital world. That’s why we offer social tariffs, regular IT sessions for our more vulnerable customers and recently launched our KCOM Foundation which provides community funding to fix the digital divide. We’re partnering with Hey Smile Foundation to award local groups and charities with grants of between 5-25K to address the digital divide. We’ll be giving out awards twice a year for projects that promote online inclusion, connect generations, and help boost digital skills across the Humber. How do I apply for a grant? Please visit the following webpage or scan the QR code: kcom.com/KCOMFoundationApplications Page 12 | KCOM in the Community
KCOM in the Community | Page 13 KCOM has shown real commitment to ensuring grassroot groups which underpin our local community are supported through this new fund. Not only has KCOM committed funding through its new KCOM Foundation but through other community initiatives and engagement. KCOM put people first and through its regular community activities keep community at the heart of every day business. We are proud of work along side KCOM making local peoples lives that little bit better. Jamie Lewis, CEO, HEY Smile Foundation ” “
Page 14 | KCOM in the Community We have been working with Hull and East Yorkshire Children’s University (HEYCU) for more than a decade and are proud of what we have accomplished together. Our staff get actively involved in delivering fun and practical STEM events to help inspire and ignite a passion for technology We partner with Hull City on Safer Internet Day to deliver engaging activities that will help children stay safe online Our Learning Zone welcomes 1,500 children a year on experience days As well at supporting the Breakfast with Santa Initiative, we make up Christmas Eve bags for up to 100 children in foster care Our Partners: Hull & East Yorkshire Children's University
KCOM in the Community | Page 15 Without this wonderful space and resources, we would not be able to deliver our Ambassadors of Hull and Trawling experiences. These experiences teach children all about Hull's wonderful past and present, and the Learning Zone gives children a safe space to research and reflect after exploring the city centre. Children feel a real sense of pride about where they live after these experiences and often continue the learning back in their classrooms. This is all thanks to KCOM's generosity - we could not do this without them! Rose James, CEO, HEY Children’s University ” “ If your school would like to work with HEYCU to take part in one of their learning experiences, please visit: www.hullchildrensuniversity.com/experiences-for-schools
Page 16 | KCOM in the Community It has helped me quite a lot, actually. When I come with questions I don't get bombarded with answers. I get answers very simple, very explanatory, something that you can understand and go away with and practice at home. “ The Learning Zone Our Partners: Age UK As part of our work around digital inclusion, we work to open up the Internet to everyone. Along with HEYCU, our Learning Zone is also used by other charities and community groups to help everyone strive and thrive in a digital world. The Learning Zone at Carr Lane is an accredited UK Online Centre through the Good Things Foundation, a charity supporting digitally and socially excluded people to improve their lives through digital technology. Every second Monday of the month, our KCOM customer champions run our IT and Biscuits sessions in partnership with Age UK Hull and East Yorkshire. ” Terry, IT & Biscuits Attendee
KCOM in the Community | Page 17 Senior Tigers, IT & Biscuits Session If you’re interested in booking on an IT and Biscuits session, contact the Age UK team direct on 01482 324644 or hello@ageukhull Walk in s are welcome.
Page 18 | KCOM in the Community Our Partners: Cat Zero Humber We’ve been corporate partners of Cat Zero Humber for over 15 years. Cat Zero is a charity dedicated to supporting people of all ages, including young people and full families, helping them with employment or training. Through confidence-building activities, tailored plans and by using the organisation’s 72-foot Challenge yacht as a tool for change, the charity has helped hundreds of people back into education, training, or simply on the path towards their goals. Our partner investment supports their work across the Humber, but we've also helped young people with tech support, staff engagement opportunities, and employability skills at our Learning Zone.
KCOM in the Community | Page 19 Catzero would like to thank KCOM for their support as a funding partner over the years, the financial support offered allows us to continue our work with families in the Hull area, the support is valued and appreciated. Delivering our activities to KCOM be it on a yacht or in a building is always a pleasure with their fun and engaging staff and furthermore allows us to expand the reach of the charity. Pete Tighe, Partnership & Development Manager, Cat Zero ” “
Page 20 | KCOM in the Community We’re committed to inspiring future talent As a business at the cutting edge of technology, KCOM’s future is reliant on recruiting people with the skills to keep us at the forefront of the rapidly evolving digital and engineering worlds. Our KCOM Ambassadors give their time to support: Career fairs “Day in the Life” talks Curriculum-based lessons Industry insight days Mock interviews Women in Engineering events As part of our ongoing mission to be a Carbon Net Zero business, we donate where we can. In 2023 we donated one of our iconic K6 Kiosks to Hull College, and in 2024 we’re helping to kit out new learning spaces at Northern Lincolnshire UTC, where we deliver curriculum-based learning.
KCOM in the Community | Page 21 Our Partners: Ron Dearing We are proud to be a founding partner of Ron Dearing UTC. We work closely with the college to provide curriculum-based activities, and to provide apprenticeships for aspiring engineers and digital talent. KCOM’s continued support of RDUTC is vital to our curriculum and the national skills gap we face in the UK. Companies such as KCOM offer invaluable knowledge and experience in both the engineering and digital sectors, and enable our students to really understand what they stand for and offer as a company. As a founding partner of the UTC they have supported us from the start and enabled our students to be successful in their future. Glenn Jensen, Senior Assistant Principal, Ron Dearing ” “
Page 22 | KCOM in the Community STEM Humber STEM Days Our KCOM engineers love taking part in these events, which impact around 700 local primary and secondary school children. The events give the children a chance to be an engineer for the day and learn practical skills along the way. We deliver STEM-focused activities in local schools and colleges to spark enthusiasm for careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics – and to help prepare children and young people for the world of work more generally. Alongside our partners in education, we hold several STEM events throughout the year, including:
KCOM in the Community | Page 23 Safer Internet Day WiME As a local broadband company, keeping children safe online is a top priority. Every February we support Safer Internet Day, partnering with Hey Children’s University and Hull City to deliver an interactive day for around 50 young digital champions. Every year we partner with WiME to inspire and attract girls and women into engineering careers. This event is attended by engineers from across our business from IT, Project Management and Field Technicians. In 2023 we also provided an experience day for one of the competition winners, and in 2024 we’re taking part in their Raising Aspirations programme.
Page 24 | KCOM in the Community Our Partners: Freedom Festival Freedom Festival is the region’s largest arts and culture festival. KCOM have been proud sponsors for over 10 years now. Our involvement to date has ranged from cabinet wrap competitions to powering their online content, and we always have an outreach presence on the festival weekend with lots of family friendly activities for everyone to enjoy.
KCOM in the Community | Page 25 Our KCOM Inclusion Team ensure that KCOM employees feel seen, safe, and included. The Inclusion Team help to plan and run events. As well as marking Pride month in June, we sponsor large-scale events. This includes events such as Hull Pride, where our staff, family, and friends walk proudly in the parade. In 2023, nine of our classic K6 Kiosks got a special makeover to represent different sections of the LGBTQI+ community. Our Partners: Hull Pride
Page 26 | KCOM in the Community KCOM Volunteering All KCOM employees are offered paid leave each year to volunteer at a charity of their choice. We live by our core value of "standing shoulder to shoulder with our local community by giving back through volunteering". Our volunteers take part in regular green initiatives like tree planting, litter picking, and beach cleans We’re founding partners of the Time2Volunteer initiative All of our employees get 2 days to volunteer a year, resulting in up to 1000 volunteer hours a year for local causes
KCOM in the Community | Page 27 Festive Giving December is a key date in the Community Calendar where we love to help local causes. It’s also our biggest volunteer month where we work closely with our charity partners, bringing festive cheer to people of all ages.In 2022, our Christmas Giving Campaign won the Commitment to the Local Community category at the Better Society Awards, where we were commended on our approach to supporting families post pandemic.
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