Our first spotlighted story of the month picks up on a theme that continues to dominate headlines: the cost of living crisis. Expect more to follow as brands recognise the role they can play to prevent devastating levels of poverty this winter.
Keep reading to see all of our top picks for August and text ‘Purpose’ to 07367897583 to receive our daily WhatsApp news round-ups.
Iceland takes action to ease impact of cost of living crisis
It was a busy month for Iceland as the supermarket sought to alleviate the strain of the cost of living crisis for its shoppers with a series of new initiatives. With Age UK reporting 15% of the UK’s pensioners were living in poverty in 2020/21, Iceland launched £30 gift vouchers for the elderly to offer greater support. Later in the month, Iceland introduced interest-free loans for its customers to help with their food shop amid inflation. To top these initiatives off, Iceland then launched its ‘Shop Smart, Cook Savvy’ campaign in partnership with Utilita Energy. Helping families to maximise their budgets through free workshops, the campaign also saw Iceland alter its product packaging to reflect energy efficient cooking methods.
Read more here – https://bit.ly/3SBNmqu & https://bbc.in/3w6oAF9 & https://bit.ly/3Kj7sC5
PwC to accept applicants with lower second class degrees to increase socio-economic diversity
In August, PwC, one of the UK’s largest graduate employers, changed its recruitment policy to accept applicants with a lower second class degree, compared to its previous policy of hiring graduates with a first or 2:1 degree exclusively. The move aims to increase socio-economic diversity, with Universities UK reporting that students from disadvantaged backgrounds are less likely to gain top grades at degree level. The new policy sees PwC opening up graduate roles, internships and placements to students from a broader range of backgrounds, creating more opportunities and improving the diversity of its workforce.
Find out more here – https://bbc.in/3SQSBm9
Morrisons launches line of ‘carbon neutral eggs’
This month, Morrisons unveiled its new line of carbon neutral eggs. The hens laying the eggs are fed a soya-free diet, including insects which are in turn fed on food waste from Morrisons’ bakery, fruit and vegetable sites. Removing soya from the hens’ diets prevents emissions from clearing forests and other land to grow the crop, as well as cutting out transport pollution from shipping the feed. The farm producing the first stock of carbon neutral eggs also features a large wind turbine and solar panels, while a fifth of its land is planted with trees.
Learn more here – https://bit.ly/3QghuG6
New Cadbury campaign encourages sign language take up
Launched in August, Cadbury’s ‘Sign with Fingers’ campaign saw the company debut a video featuring a deaf teenager and her family signing to each other. Subtitles for the sign language being used are at points obscured, with the message, ‘feel like you’ve missed bits? Let’s help more people feel included’ later appearing on screen. The video directs viewers to Cadbury BSL resources in partnership with the National Deaf Children’s Society. The campaign is a light-hearted reminder of the changes we can make to be more inclusive and accessible, and is a great example of a brand using its influence to inspire meaningful change.
Find out more here – https://bit.ly/3wBqPAz