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Blogs: Working with stakeholders

5 March 2013 Posted by Jim Rushen

Fresh with an updated corporate strategy, Jim Rushen, Group Head of Environment, describes how Centrica’s upstream growth plans do not change the company’s commitment to mitigating climate change. 

20 February 2013 Posted by Kate Lemon

The Generation Green programme is looking for primary school classes to contribute to The Powerful Story – the story of energy in the past, present and future, with the winning entries featuring in a published book. 

11 May 2012 Posted by CR updates

We continued to work closely with our trade unions in 2011 to meet the needs of our employees and help us support our business goals. 

1 May 2012 Posted by Simon Henderson

Simon talks about the free centrica.com web app we launched a couple of weeks ago as part of our ongoing plans to use new digital channels within our corporate communications strategy. 

20 January 2012 Posted by Jeff Oatham

Wind generation will continue to play an important part in Centrica's generation portfolio - we respond to a new report from the independent social policy think tank Civitas, which has made the claim that windpower is “inordinately expensive and ineffective at cutting CO2 emissions.” 

21 December 2011 Posted by Suzanne Edmond

Suzanne's year of discovery draws to a close - “Superstructures, North Sea Gas” is due to be broadcast in the New Year and captures the long journey which ultimately brings gas into peoples' homes. A big thank you to everyone who has been involved, both onshore and offshore, and to all the unsung heroes of the industry who work tirelessly behind the scenes to make our industry a success. 

18 November 2011 Posted by Suzanne Edmond

We have visited the heart of the operations in the North Sea. The Noble Julie Robertson (NJR) drilling rig is currently sitting about a mile away from the recently installed Ensign platform. This ‘jack up' drilling rig was floated into position last August where its three 100m high legs were lowered onto the sea bed and its platform raised above the water level, new technology allows us to get at a great deal more gas from this rig than we would have been able to in the past. 

11 November 2011 Posted by Simon Henderson

In her second guest appearance, we've asked Chris Tate, Head of CR at British Gas, to share an amazing story about the dedication and community spirit of our engineers who took part in a special ‘Children in Need' edition of the popular BBC DIY SOS show to revitalise Norris Green Youth Centre in Liverpool. 

28 October 2011 Posted by Briana Whitlock

We’ve been ranked #1 in Lundquist’s Top 100 ranking of European listed companies for the effectiveness of our corporate responsibility communications online. 

20 October 2011 Posted by Briana Whitlock

An interview with a Green Team member and Environmental Advisor on what this commitment means for us. 

21 September 2011 Posted by Simon Henderson

We are second in the utility sector and 10th in the Global 500 top companies in the 2010 Carbon Disclosure Leadership Index. It is our third year of participatio and we increased our carbon disclosure score by four percentage points to 96%. The Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) recognises companies who work to improve measurement, data collection and reporting processes alongside reducing their carbon impacts. This approach resonates very much with our own. 

13 September 2011 Posted by Suzanne Edmond

The challenge confronting our reservoir engineers is that although the Ensign field was discovered in 1986 up to now no gas has been produced because it doesn't flow easily from the reservoir into a conventional well. That's where Big Orange comes into the story. 

5 September 2011 Posted by Simon Henderson

Our two Nissan Leaf electric vehicles (EVs) are proving a big hit with our Windsor and Staines employees. We’ve had the cars wrapped in full British Gas livery so you can’t miss them on the roads between Windsor and Staines. 

16 August 2011 Posted by Suzanne Edmond

I have heard a lot of people asking what happened to the British Summer, but it wasn't until this last week in the North Sea that I really began to notice how remote it seems. 

29 July 2011 Posted by Suzanne Edmond

We headed to Hartlepool where finishing touches were being made to our new Ensign platform. We had originally visited the fabrication yard in May where the platform is being constructed. The thing that struck me most when we first walked around the “topside” of the platform is that these massive structures are effectively built by hand with each piece of metal individually cut to size, welded together, sealed and painted bright yellow by workers from the Hartlepool site. 

25 July 2011 Posted by Jeff Oatham

A recent survey shows that the UK public still believe that nuclear should be included in the energy mix, although nearly a majority don't believe the industry does enough to inform and educate on nuclear power. Find information here that is accessible and transparent. 

19 July 2011 Posted by Suzanne Edmond

How many people when they turn on their hobs or heating, really think, or indeed care, where their gas comes from? The offshore industry is often seen as a far off and remote place. People rarely think about the technological and engineering challenges that have to be overcome to operate safely and effectively in an often harsh offshore environment. This year we are working with the Discovery Channel to open the doors to the offshore industry. 

7 July 2011 Posted by Simon Henderson

It’s a big challenge and the point made by Sam in his speech in June is that the UK energy industry is caught between volatility in the world market, commitment to carbon cuts, and our obligation as a society to ensure that energy remains affordable, just as household wealth faces its biggest squeeze in a generation. It is a very difficult circle to square – but we must ensure that consumers are made more aware of the challenges and understand their role in helping to overcome them. 

21 June 2011 Posted by Simon Henderson

To publicise the Corporate Responsibility report to employees, we ran a competition to win a video camera and then asked the winners to interview their colleagues about Centrica's approach to corporate responsibility. Watch the video to find out what happened. 

20 June 2011 Posted by Alice Gill

During our live web chat earlier this week on wind energy there was a question that had us stumped and Neville Barltrop, one of those responding, needed to ask a few of our colleagues for their knowledge on the subject! So here are our answers as promised... 

14 June 2011 Posted by Alice Gill

I am really looking forward to tomorrow's web chat on 'Wind energy in the UK: sorting facts from fiction'. We've already had some great questions in on everything from the challenges of accurate forecasting for wind demand to the energy used in the manufacture of turbines. 

3 June 2011 Posted by Alice Gill

As part of the UK's Wind Week, members of the renewables team in Centrica will be live online to answer your questions about wind energy on Wednesday 15 June. You can either submit them live on the day or send them through to us now. See www.centrica.com/windchat to send in your questions or to sign up for a reminder. 

31 May 2011 Posted by Alice Gill

During the second week of May, I was at Glens of Foudland onshore wind farm, where we hosted some students - school age as well as postgraduates. The weather was perfect, and we had some fantastic questions. I'm looking forward to the next education week in September. 

31 May 2011 Posted by Claire Osborne

last week we launched the energyshare tariff, the first new renewable electricity tariff from British Gas since the launch of the Ofgem Green Energy Supply Guidelines. The thing that is so unique about energyshare is that it gives anyone an opportunity to get involved in sourcing, using and generating their own renewable energy. 

23 May 2011 Posted by Briana Whitlock

At our recent AGM, our Chairman Sir Roger Carr was asked why he makes a point of noting that we have three women sitting on the Centrica board. Talking to the recruitment team, they'll tell you how crucial it is that we plan now for the workforce we're going to need in one, three and even five years time. We have to consider the wider job market, the economy, and other factors. So when we offer roles and only 5% of the applications for them are from women, we're missing a huge portion of the population. 

13 May 2011 Posted by Simon Henderson

We've built a carbon map to demonstrate where carbon emissions occur across our operations and their relative size. Find out here what the map can tell you. 

11 May 2011 Posted by Simon Henderson

Through encouraging a proportion of our shareholders to receive their Annual Report and Accounts and Summary Financial Statement materials online, we have achieved a reduction in carbon emissions of 262 tonnes carbon dioxide. 

9 May 2011 Posted by Alice Gill

There are a number of schools and universities planning to visit this week to find out more about why we need wind energy, how we turn the wind into electricity, operating a wind farm and how it shares its land with the cows. So fingers crossed that the weather will be nice... but windy! 

21 April 2011 Posted by Briana Whitlock

I thought it might be interesting fill you in on some of the ways we're helping to enhance education - through schools in the communities where we operate. We're aiming to inspire young people from an early age by sharing practical experiences of science in action. 

15 April 2011 Posted by Jeff Oatham

We thought a short note introducing our nuclear energy content would be helpful – this is the first time we’ve reported on nuclear. Also, considering current events, we have provided a short comment on the events in Japan. 

13 April 2011 Posted by Briana Whitlock

Collecting community data helps us to gauge what best to do next with our programmes and partnerships, and to begin to understand some of their long-term impacts. In 2010, we worked to update our community data collection processes. 

11 April 2011 Posted by Simon Henderson

I have been watching some unusual structures going up in the car park... 

8 April 2011 Posted by Simon Henderson

Integrated reporting is the term used to describe a company's Annual Report and Accounts that includes corporate responsibility or sustainability information in an ‘integrated' way, rather than developing two entirely separate reports, or simply providing a separate section on corporate responsibility within the main report. What I disagree with in this debate is the view that a fully integrated Annual Report means that a separate CR report would no longer be necessary. 

7 April 2011 Posted by Alice Gill

Find out about the campaign to engage the 'silent majority' of people who support renewable energy. 

11 March 2011 Posted by Alice Gill

Lincs offshore construction is now underway. The jacket (supporting structure) for the offshore substation has been lifted onto a barge, shipped out to its new home and is currently being secured to the seabed. This is the first offshore structure to be put in place for Lincs. 

21 February 2011 Posted by Simon Henderson

Weekly on the news, there are reports of companies going into administration and people's jobs at risk. Well, ours is a good news story and I wanted to share some of the facts and figures behind it. 

14 January 2011 Posted by Simon Henderson

It is important that we recognise the commitment of people to a wide range of causes, and enable them to get involved without feeling that work is restricting their opportunity to do so. This week, the Institute of Directors (IoD) issued a call for companies to encourage volunteering among their employees because they've found that over half of workers have an interest in being involved in local community projects. 

29 November 2010 Posted by Simon Henderson

Last week, Centrica was recognised for the third time in a row as one of the best companies in the world for employees aged over 50. 

22 October 2010 Posted by Simon Henderson

Centrica has been awarded the Carbon Trust's highest certification for the second time. It is essential that we set an example in our internal operations to give us a strong and credible platform to lead the consumer market for low carbon products and services. 

19 October 2010 Posted by Simon Henderson

Our latest fuel mix disclosure, as required by Ofgem, is now available on our website. 

13 October 2010 Posted by Simon Henderson

British Gas has £15m worth of solar panels waiting to be donated and installed through the mySolar School programme 

8 October 2010 Posted by Simon Henderson

Watch Simon Henderson answer questions on sustainability at Centrica. 

10 May 2010 Posted by Simon Henderson

This is a question that, as a company that focuses on online reporting, we get asked a lot. And so I thought I would tackle it in my blog. 

5 May 2010 Posted by Simon Henderson

Today we launched our 2009 corporate responsibility report and there are always initial nerves when waiting to see how people will respond to the new content.... 

13 April 2010 Posted by Jeff Oatham

The 2009 Corporate Responsibility Report is in its final stages and will soon be released on the website. There are a few new features to explore with the Report. 

18 March 2010 Posted by Simon Henderson

It's the time of year when community fundraising and volunteering activities are really starting to get into full swing. With this weekend being Sport Relief, and the weather taking a turn towards Spring, there is a pulse of activity going on at many of our sites around the country. 

10 February 2010 Posted by Simon Henderson

Encouraging a lower carbon approach to energy usage among customers is not simply about providing the right products and services. There is a huge amount of work done by industry, consumer interest groups and government to develop the market frameworks for new technologies and to build up the processes required to incentivise uptake by consumers. One recent example is the feed-in tariff. 

18 January 2010 Posted by Simon Henderson

Today marks the launch of our Green Streets community initiative, where 14 communities will compete to reduce their energy usage and carbon emissions over the next year. Green streets ties community investment and the environmental agenda into the heart of our strategic development. 

30 December 2009 Posted by Simon Henderson

Interesting article by Jeremy Leggett in The Guardian today on the lack of disincentives for investing in coal. 

16 December 2009 Posted by Simon Henderson

Last Friday, I was involved in a live web chat with two expert colleagues from British Gas. It was a pretty manic 60 minutes but we got through 23 questions and our web statistics show that 173 people visited the web chat page during the live session. There were some great questions too... 

11 December 2009 Posted by Jeff Oatham

Jeff explores the issue of nuclear safety in this week’s blog – visiting the topic of radiation and measures taken to contain it. 

4 December 2009 Posted by Simon Henderson

Smart meters have huge potential in terms of changing our whole relationship with the energy we use. Not only can smart meters track real time energy usage to feed directly back to the energy supplier, but there is also the opportunity for those householders who generate their own electricity to export it back to the grid. 

4 December 2009 Posted by Jeff Oatham

Jeff is Corporate Reputation Manager at Centrica and was responsible for working with the nuclear team on the company’s entrance to the nuclear industry. Over the next few weeks, Jeff will present his views on why he supports joining the nuclear industry. 

25 November 2009 Posted by Simon Henderson

Much to my surprise and frustration, an article was published in the Guardian today that listed British Gas as one of the companies failing to respond to the lead set by the Government in carbon emissions reduction. 

19 November 2009 Posted by Simon Henderson

Bursting with questions about ground source heat pumps? Worrying about how you can change your energy using habits? Not convinced energy companies are that bothered about climate change? If you have an opinion or a question on things to do with climate change and energy companies, let us know. We've lined up some experts to answer in a live web chat on Friday 11 December. 

2 November 2009 Posted by Simon Henderson

We've decided to hold our next live web chat on the theme of ‘energy companies, climate change and customers'. It's quite a broad theme, so that's where you come in. We want you to vote on the topics that you'd be most interested in hearing about. 

21 October 2009 Posted by Katie Alloway

A report by the Energy Saving Trust has found that children in Britain are the worst in Europe for switching off lights and saving electricity. 

20 October 2009 Posted by Simon Henderson

The CBI's Higher Education taskforce, which Sam Laidlaw chairs, has produced a report called ‘Stronger together - business and universities in turbulent times' which calls for greater collaboration between the higher education sector, business and government to support the UK's economic recovery and sustainable international competitiveness. 

9 October 2009 Posted by Simon Henderson

Both politicians and businesses face dilemmas in taking decisions which are challenging in the short term but essential for long-term sustainability. 

22 September 2009 Posted by Simon Henderson

There is much momentum around action on climate change right now and all the focus is on New York. The results of the 2009 Carbon Disclosure Project have been released and 500 businesses have launched the Copenhagen Communiqué to world leaders. 

31 July 2009 Posted by Simon Henderson

An update on our employee 'Giving Weekends', in which a total of 1,260 employees gave over 10,700 man hours to help out at 323 different projects across the country free of charge. 

26 June 2009 Posted by Simon Henderson

Much of our community activity programme is run via our "Get Involved" programme, a resource for employees who want to be matched up with opportunities to volunteer in the community or provide support through initiatives such as fundraising or payroll giving. 

16 June 2009 Posted by Simon Henderson

What does corporate responsibility mean? Do most people care? And should we drop the term 'corporate responsibility' altogether? 

4 June 2009 Posted by Simon Henderson

You may have seen that we held a live web chat recently to give people a chance to question us on our CR report and current strategy. Our CR Committee Chairman Mary Francis led the web chat and we typed our way through 26 questions on everything from nuclear power to social tariffs. We are continually seeking new ways to engage with stakeholders on a range of issues. 

19 May 2009 Posted by Simon Henderson

Our CR report is published and available and contains aa huge amount of information on our strategy and performance. But if you'd rather be actively engaged in CR debates and challenge Centrica on our approach, we've got an idea you might be interested in... 

5 May 2009 Posted by Simon Henderson

Find out the results of our recent stakeholder survey on corporate responsibility. 

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