Member Article

Fibre broadband provider 4th Utility signs first ever charity partnership as ambitious fundraising plans announced

Manchester-based fibre broadband provider 4th Utility has signed a major deal with an organisation helping unemployed women find jobs.

It’s the first ever charity partnership for 4th Utility, a supplier of ultrafast connectivity to homes and businesses across the UK, and it has been agreed with fellow city region-based Smart Works Greater Manchester.

As a corporate partner, 4th Utility has committed to raising a minimum of £10,000 in 2022 for the charity, which supports women throughout their employment journey, including in-person and online pre-employment coaching and interview styling.

Since launching in 2015, Smart Works Greater Manchester has been working to deliver its mission and vision to help more women get into the workplace.

It has delivered more than 3,000 appointments with the aim helping women build interview techniques and allowing them to be their best at crucial moments in life, instilling confidence, self-belief and practical skills. The charity also provides workwear and accessories for the women it supports, taking in clothing donations from the public. Smart Works Greater Manchester says 70% of the women it has supported have successfully secured employment.

4th Utility was established in 2017, and works with residential and commercial landlords, property developers and house builders to install and upgrade properties with full fibre connectivity.

The new corporate partnership announced today will also see 4th Utility staff take part in various projects planned throughout the year, including volunteering days supporting Smart Works Greater Manchester in Stockport town centre.

On the partnership announcement, Tony Hughes, CEO of 4th Utility, said: “Our team was truly inspired by what the Smart Works Greater Manchester team does, and their sizeable ambitions meant they were a perfect fit to become our first ever charity partner.

“So many women across Greater Manchester have been disproportionately and negatively impacted by the pandemic, meaning the charity’s services are needed now more than ever.

“We hope to make a significant contribution to the efforts of a fellow Greater Manchester-based organisation and look forward to helping with their programme of exciting projects planned throughout the year.”

Jan Iceton, Chair of Smart Works Greater Manchester, said: “We are delighted to have 4th Utility on board as a new corporate partner – they share our commitment to giving back into the Greater Manchester community and have the skills and resources to make a significant impact on the success of our organisation.

“As we enter into a period of much more active recruitment, with a long-term partner like 4th Utility on board, we can take advantage of the jobs market by supporting even more unemployed women to ‘get the clothes, get the confidence, get the job’.”

Smart Works Greater Manchester said its services are now vital to ensuring the country builds back better across communities, enabling women to take advantage of the resurgence in employment now seen across the board. The charity helps to make sure they are ready to apply for roles and that they succeed at interview.

Ms Iceton added: “At the beginning of 2021, to support our growth objective, we set ourselves a target to secure five corporate partners by the end of the year and we are thrilled that 4th Utility now joins Timetastic, Trinnovo Group, Ingeus and Energize to make that a reality.

“Working with 4th Utility will make a real difference to Smart Works Greater Manchester and its vital service delivery, helping to fund our activities, raise awareness of what we do and, ultimately, improve the employment outcomes for many women across our region.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Sam .