Sodexo’s chairwoman of the Board of Directors Sophie Bellon opened the second day of the conference with a keynote speech on the need for a collective ambition to make a lasting positive impact within our communities.
The Social Value Awards aim to recognise organisations that demonstrate ‘innovation, leadership and best practice’.
Bellon said: “The Covid-19 crisis is a unique opportunity to find and implement a new social balance in order to ‘recover, rebuild, renew.’
“We will make tremendous progress on issues that will shape our future, if public and private players seize them together, with ambition, courage and mutual trust.”
Sodexo’s healthcare segment was recognised in the ‘Social Value through Decent Work: Project Award’, a category focusing on the achievements of organisations that demonstrate care for its people.
In June 2020 Sodexo introduced a face-to-face counselling service to help frontline keyworkers deal with the pressures of working through the Covid-19 pandemic. The service will continue until April 2021 and so far Sodexo has delivered over 800 sessions.
Sodexo was also highly commended in the ‘Embedding Social Value in Contract Management: Project Award’ for its support of residents in student accommodation at Northumbria University during the Covid-19 pandemic. Sodexo offered the option for food and hydration food parcels to be delivered to those who were self-isolating.
Sean Haley, regional chair of Sodexo UK & Ireland, added: “Congratulations to both teams and thank you for doing all that you do. Both these initiatives reflect the positive impact our teams are having on the communities in which we operate, every day.
“The Covid-19 pandemic has brought to the fore the importance of doing business with purpose and responsibility and I am proud of all of our teams who continue to do all they can to ensure we are providing social value in all we do.”