Corporate social responsibility
We are committed to operating our business in a way which demonstrates respect for the environments and communities in which we operate.
Environmental sustainability
We aim to run our practices in a way which minimises our impact on the environment. A cross-departmental Environmental Working group drives firm initiatives and co-ordinates employee engagement. This includes working with both employees and our supply chain to encourage the efficient use of resources, monitoring of energy and water consumption and recycling wherever possible.
Community work
Around 15 volunteers provide at least an hour a week each to support an Inner City Reading Scheme at St Andrew’s School, Islington, where they work with children on a one-to-one basis. The firm provides an annual total of around 540 volunteer hours. We have also given £5,000 to the school to create a dedicated reading area.
Employees from both the fee-earning and the support sides of the firm volunteer to cook breakfasts at the Whitechapel Mission, a centre for the homeless in East London. Six staff go along to the mission every fortnight and help to prepare breakfast and hand out washing materials to around 150 people per session.
We’re also involved in the City Gateway initiative, which is a charity working with young people in Tower Hamlets who are not in employment, education or training. We provide students with mentoring, training and work experience. We have also hosted various learning events and provide pro bono legal advice.
Obviously, the rewards for our community work are intrinsic in the work itself. However, it’s always nice to be recognised. In 2007, we were awarded the Heart of the City Award in that year’s City of London Dragon Awards. These awards recognise the contribution that companies and organisations make to communities in Greater London. We won the award for the weekly PopLaw legal clinic in Poplar and for our volunteer work with the homeless at the Whitechapel Mission.
Charitable giving
The Denton Wilde Sapte Social Committee holds various fundraising events through the year and gives the proceeds of these events to a charity, which is selected by all employees on an annual basis.
Every year, the Denton Wilde Sapte Charitable Trust allocates a proportion of the budget to funding a wide range of charitable organisations who apply to the firm for funds. The focus is on the relief of poverty, rehabilitation and smaller charities. The Trust supports individual employees who participate in fundraising activities by themselves. We also match the fund raising efforts of the DWS Social Committee up to a maximum of £6,000.