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Virgin Media has launched new plans to reduce the company’s environmental impact, support UK communities and remain on track to become a more inclusive employer.
The ambitious ‘Meaningful Connections Plan’ comprises five-year goals spanning three key areas: people, planet and communities.
The telecoms company has set a goal to achieve net zero carbon operations (Scopes 1 and 2) and zero waste operations by the end of 2025.
It will continue to reduce its impact on the planet by becoming more energy efficient (including fully transitioning its fleet to electric vehicles by 2030), lowering emissions, sourcing renewable power supply and reducing waste by increasing the reuse of materials across its products and operations.
The firm is also fine-tuning its focus on becoming a more inclusive employer so that the company represents the communities it serves.
This includes creating hundreds more employment opportunities for people from underrepresented groups. Virgin Media has already launched five employee networks representing underrepresented ethnicities, gender equality, disability, neurodiversity and LGBTQ+ communities, and has rolled out specialist equity training across the business.
In addition, the company is concentrating on communities. Research carried out of 5,000 people has shown that more than two-fifths said that the wellbeing of their community is more important since Covid-19, with almost two-thirds admitting to feeling lonely when they lack time to connect with others.
Virgin Media is collaborating with Carers UK charity to use technology and innovation to address the loneliness experienced by eight out of ten unpaid carers and will strive to connect more carers to each other and to their communities.
It aims to connect 1.5 million people to their communities and each other, via digital technology, innovation and the power of its people to support carers and communities.
Lutz Schüler, Chief Executive Officer at Virgin Media, said: “With the country beginning to look towards recovering and rebuilding, we believe it’s vital to use this moment to bounce back in a better way.
“As a major UK employer and investor with a presence in communities across the country, we know that we can make a positive impact. Our Meaningful Connections Plan will use our purpose, people and products to create lasting change in the towns and cities we serve, drive greater diversity and inclusion into our business and see direct action taken to help tackle climate change.
“This plan spans across our whole business and is backed by bold and ambitious goals which set a benchmark and provide focus for what we want to achieve over the next five years, starting right now.”
