Lord Lieutenant of West Midlands presents prestigious King’s Award to business

The King’s Awards for Enterprise are amongst the most prestigious business awards in the UK and recognise organisations for their contribution to International Trade, Innovation, Sustainable Development or Promoting Opportunity.

Unity – one of only 29 businesses acknowledged for excellence in the Sustainability category this year - was awarded for its commitment to delivering positive impact in local communities and adopting socially-responsible business practices.

The Lord Lieutenant visited the bank’s headquarters in Brindleyplace, Birmingham to present the award and praised Unity for its governance, culture and focus on sustainability.

He said: “Many organisations would have failed without the sort of support Unity is able to offer flexibly to disadvantaged groups and communities.

“The bank has been awarded not just for its achievements in the management of money, but for other matters that count such as climate sustainability and the way it looks after its people.

“I applaud Unity myself, but I also bring the wishes of King Charles III for longevity in the bank’s efforts in maintaining the sustainable platform that it’s created.”

As part of its commitment to sustainable development, Unity uses customers deposits to support organisations that make a difference to society. Every loan proposal is aligned against one or more of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) ensuring that the bank’s financing delivers quantifiable impact.

Colin Fyfe, CEO at Unity Trust Bank, said: “We are very proud to be awarded a King’s Award for Enterprise for Sustainable Development and it would not be possible without the hard work of all of our staff who come into work every day looking to make a difference.

“As an ethical bank committed to a ‘double bottom line’ of delivering positive impact as well as commercial success, we’re determined to build on our success; to grow and develop our business and to continue to make a difference in the communities in which we operate.”

Founded by the trade union movement in 1984 to serve the common good, Unity has marked its 40th anniversary by pledging to donate £40,000 to good causes this year and launching a new Unity Impact Grants Programme to give customers the opportunity to apply for grant funding for community-enhancing projects.

By Beth Kilgallon - Contributor