Giving Back

Giving back at Sky Betting & Gaming is all about supporting the opportunities and careers of people in our communities, it is a big part of our culture.

Over the last 20 years we have grown to become one of Yorkshire’s leading digital and tech companies and it simply wouldn’t have been possible without the great Yorkshire talent and the support we’ve had from the city, so it is only right we give back to help further enhance that community.

Now more than ever we want to give back, and it is something that our staff our passionate about, and at Sky Betting & Gaming we know that a strong local community ultimately leads to us being a better place to work. Here are 4 ways that Sky Betting & Gaming give back at the minute, but are always looking for more ways to be involved in the local community!?

1.?????Employee Led Volunteering

?At Sky Betting & Gaming, all our employees receive a yearly 16 hours paid volunteering time to encourage them to work on projects they are passionate about in their own communities.?

So far, we’ve seen our people support: Food banks, Befriending Services, The elderly, Leeds & Sheffield Pride.?

We also introduced a ‘Charity Match Fund’ for anything our employees raise for charities up to ￡500.?

2.?????Charity Partnerships

Over the last 6 years, we have chosen a Charity Partner which we then support through employee fundraising and events throught the year. It’s one of the highlights of the SBG calendar when our colleagues are invited to nominate a Charity close to their hears and are given the chance to ‘pitch’ for the business’s support.?

The partnership creates an opportunity to tap into our collective skills and brand reach. One of the best events of the year is our Charity Ball which over the years has been our biggest fundraising event and is well attended by our suppliers and people. In 2019 our Charity Ball for Yorkshire Air Ambulance raised over ￡85,000!

Our Charity Partners have included Macmillan Cancer Support (current), Yorkshire Air Ambulance, Candlelighters Trust, Give A Duck, Teenage Cancer Trust.?

Even with the challenges of Covid in 2020 & 2021 we’ve still been able to raise over ￡69,000 for Macmillan Cancer Support and that’s a huge thanks to the dedication and passion our people have towards giving back.

3.?????Skills based volunteering

‘Know It Share It’ is one of our 3 values, at Sky Betting and Gaming we love to share knowledge and use our skills to improve that of others. And with over 1,500 employees, there is a lot of knowledge and skills that we can give back to our community!?

We are trialling a new partnership with Participate Projects which will match employees with local charities to use their expertise on skills-based volunteering projects. Given the highly skilled workforce we have we can provide unique access to talent for charities to access.?

Hopefully we will have some great stories over the year!

4.?????Local Tech Community

Given we are one of the leading tech and digital companies in Yorkshire it’s no surprise the Leeds Tech Community is so important to us.?

Our employees have helped to organise a variety of events to network & share ideas including; Leeds/Sheffield Dev Ops, Tech Managers Meet Up, Mobile Monthly and Product Tank Yorkshire.?

We’ve also built strong relationships with our Yorkshire Universities, running events to encourage graduates to pursue a career in tech with our ‘Coding for Beginners’ and running Mock Assessment Days.?

As normality returns and our brand new Leeds office opens I’m looking forward to once again welcoming evening talks back to our purpose build amphitheartre.?

The Future?

We know the future is uncertain for many in the communities we are based, but we are committed to making more of a difference than ever before. We will be continuing to look at where we can add value and help create positive change.?

There will be many other great ways companies are impacting their local communities and we are keen to learn from the journey others have been on.?