In 2025/26 we were proud to have generated a social value of £9.1 million.
We did this through:
- Promoting local skills and employment through the creation of apprenticeships, training opportunities and providing a Real Living Wage to our staff.
- Supporting responsible regional business growth through our support for mental health and wellbeing initiatives, equality and diversity, both for Career Connect and our local supply chains.
- Cultivating healthier, safer, and more resilient communities; and through our Beneficiary Fund.
- Decarbonising and safeguarding our environment through a range of initiatives to reduce our environmental impact.
How we measure social value
We use the TOMs (Themes, Outcomes, and Measures) calculator, a standardised tool developed by Social Enterprise UK and the National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO).
By identifying relevant themes, outcomes, and measures specific to various sectors and areas of our work, the calculator provides a methodology for quantifying the monetary value of our social value outcomes.
Proud of our people In 2025/26 we:
- Had a headcount of 328, and 17% Black, Asian and Ethnic Minority colleagues
- Were recognised by the National Centre for Diversity as one of the Top 100 Most Inclusive Employers 2025 – number 18 on their annual list.
- Retained Silver accreditation as an Investor in Diversity.
- Were revalidated as a Disability Confident Leader, the highest level awarded by DWP.
- Were proud to hold ‘accredited status’ in the Liverpool City Region Fair Employment Charter.
- Achieved an exceptionally high rating on Glassdoor, with 4.8 stars based on over 150 reviews – putting us in the top 1% amongst the highest rated of all UK employers with 96% recommending us as an employer.
Committed to our planet
We continue to embed sustainability through practical action, colleague engagement and operation and supply chain considerations.
We continued to work with Positive Planet to measure and maintain our independently reviewed Carbon Reduction Plan.
We achieved Positive Planet’s gold accreditation, and we are working towards achieving Carbon Literate Organisation (CLO) silver accreditation in 2027.
Carbon Literacy Training
Working closely with the CLO, our Training and Development Team designed accredited training, tailored to Career Connect. This will help us expand Carbon Literacy training to at least 30% of our people. Youth ambassadors, managers and further trustees will have the opportunity to take part.
The Green Team continues to promote practical action and engage colleagues. Sustainability is embedded in our induction, and a MeLearning module is available to colleagues about their vital role in our environmental commitments.
We are proud to have achieved:
In 2025/26:
- Our people drove 7% more business miles than in 2024/25, while the number of employees claiming mileage fell by 6.2%. This suggests that fewer employees travelled, but those who did travelled further, reflecting our geographical reach and increased car sharing.
- We reduced electricity consumption by 8% (26,172 kWh to 24,045 kWh) and water use by approximately 4%.
- We reduced toner cartridge orders by 15% and confidential waste by 2%. • We continue to procure 100% renewable electricity at sites where we pay for electricity, making our Scope 2 emissions zero.
- We have reduced our Scope 1 emissions by 79.3% (from 2022/23 baseline) largely reflecting lower gas emissions.
Our total market-based emissions in 2025/26 were 1181.59, and Scope 3 accounted for more than 99% of our footprint.