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KCOM has revealed its three charities of the year as part of its 120th anniversary celebrations. The Hull-based broadband provider has announced Hull and East Yorkshire Children’s University, Hull and East Yorkshire Mind and Age UK Hull and East Yorkshire will be the three main beneficiaries of its charity fundraising activities throughout 2024 as it approaches its official 120th birthday on November 28. KCOM CEO Tim Shaw said: “KCOM has always been at the heart of the communities we serve and on hand to help local charities through a wide range of giving and grants. But in this special 120th anniversary year, we wanted to focus on supporting three very special local groups that make a huge difference to improving lives across our region. “From the thousands of children that Children’s University help every year, giving them real aspirations and hope for the future, to the older people given a better quality of life by Age UK Hull, and the many people who need a helping hand to improve their mental health by Hull and East Yorkshire Mind, our three chosen charities touch lives right across the community – and we can’t wait to start raising money for their vital causes.” Among the planned fundraising activities taking part throughout the year are the KCOM team’s participation in the Hull 10k, an arduous 120km hike, an MKM Stadium challenge and a gala banquet birthday party planned for November.
The female leaders of the future were urged to unleash their potential at a KCOM event to mark International Women’s Day. The event, held at the MKM Stadium this week, welcomed nearly 100 female students from schools and six form colleges across Hull, East Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire to meet inspirational women who have excelled in their chosen careers. Among the keynote speakers, offering insights from years of experience rising to the top, were Jan Collins, MD of KCOM Enterprise, and Rose James, CEO of Hull and East Yorkshire Children’s University, who both urged the young women present to embrace the opportunities available to them and “light the spark” of belief that would drive them on to great things. Speaking to a packed room, Jan Collins said: “This is about giving you as young women the tools to show how you can really fulfil your potential. I’m privileged to work for an organisation like KCOM that fosters an environment where women are able to flourish. “What these days mean for me personally, is an opportunity to reflect on all the strong women that have inspired me throughout my life to get me here today.” Jan added that young women needed to believe in their skills and abilities to ensure they take on more leadership roles in the future. “Women need more confidence to apply and stretch themselves – we’ve been raised to aspire to perfection, and we’re overly cautious,” she said.
KCOM’s work helping in the local community has been recognised with a double national award nomination. The East Yorkshire-based broadband provider has been shortlisted in two categories at the prestigious Better Society Awards, with nominations for its Commitment to the Local Community and also for Partnership with a Local Charity. The Partnership nomination is for KCOM’s work alongside Age UK Hull & East Yorkshire to raise awareness of the company’s £17m programme to upgrade its landline phone network from copper to future-proof fibre. The Commitment to the Local Community Award, an award that KCOM had previously won in 2022, also acknowledges KCOM’s wider volunteering and community support initiatives. The broadband provider is up against household names such as Dunhelm and Deloitte on the shortlist. KCOM CEO Tim Shaw said: “It’s great to be recognised at the Better Society Awards for all the work our teams do out in the communities we serve. In this, our 120th anniversary year, we’re more committed than ever to making a difference and helping to improve lives in Hull, East Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire and, especially with our network upgrade, it’s great to be able to work closely with a group like Age UK Hull & East Yorkshire to ensure all our vulnerable customers remain connected to the things that matter most to them.” Last year KCOM employees volunteered more than 1,000 hours to help local community projects while the company also supported 30 charities!
It’s National Careers Week – which means the perfect time to meet some of KCOM’s former apprentice engineers as they talk about earning while you’re learning. Hull-born Ellis Marsters join KCOM in 2022 from Ron Dearing UTC and studied for a Level 2 Telecoms Field Operative qualification. Ellis loves the practical side of his role and believes it’s a great platform to build a rewarding career in engineering on.
A sure-fire way to tell how good your broadband is, is how often the kids complain. Any buffering of the latest YouTube video, slow streaming on Netflix or slow reaction times on the Xbox and you’re guaranteed to know about it. Luckily for Roger Haywood, the complaints have stopped since he had KCOM’s ultrafast fibre broadband installed. “The kids haven’t whinged once about the internet since we had the fibre put in, which tells its own story,” says Roger. “When you’ve got streaming TVs, YouTube, the Xbox and PlayStation all going at the same time, you need reliable broadband, and when everything just works, everyone’s happy. “The big difference now is that we don’t get any buffering on the TV when we’re streaming on things like Netflix. It’s 100 per cent better than it used to be.” IT project manager Roger, from Leconfield, East Yorkshire, says his 500Mbps Lightstream package had also revolutionised his ability to work remotely. “Before with the old copper connection we were getting at best 15Mbps download, but on average eight to 10 and an upload speed of less than 1Mbps, which made working from home extremely difficult. On many occasions the use of a hot spot or turning off video on video meetings was needed, which defeats the objective of a video meeting. “Having fibre installed has completely transformed my ability to do my job from home. I’m on a lot of calls and uploading and downloading big files and it’s just more reliable and faster now – the speeds are unre
KCOM has revealed the latest groups to benefit from its Community Grant scheme, with a cub pack, aviation museum and rugby club set to receive funding. In total, five local charities have had their grant applications accepted and will receive up to £1,000 each from KCOM. These include: inclusive rugby team Hull Roundheads, the North Lincolnshire Aviation Heritage Centre, Howden Pre-School, St Stephens Neighbourhood Centre and Trinity Cubs. KCOM awards community grants of up to £1,000 to deserving groups every quarter, with organisations from across the region encouraged to make funding applications for projects that help improve local lives. Louise Babych, Community Impact Partner at KCOM, said: “This quarter we’re very pleased to be able to provide funding to charities with a wide range of missions, including some that have never benefited from our grants before. “There’s such a lot of goodwill and some really innovative ideas out there that are being put into practice to make people’s lives better in the communities we serve, and sometimes all it takes to get them off the ground is a little investment. We hope that these grants, and all the other support we provide through volunteering, will help make a real difference to the people who need help most.” One of the latest recipients, Hull Roundheads, is a rugby club with the stated aim of being as inclusive and accessible as possible, particularly the LGBTQ+ community.
KCOM has unveiled a huge new banner outside its Hull HQ to kickstart its 120th anniversary celebrations. The giant 200sq m orange banner was unfurled into place by specialist abseilers outside KCOM’s Carr Lane offices, today, as the broadband provider begins a year of events to mark its founding in 1904. Bearing the new 120 logo and the legend “Pioneering for generations” – the banner now takes price of place on the city centre landmark Telephone House, which itself was opened to coincide with KCOM’s Diamond jubilee 60th anniversary in 1964. KCOM CEO Tim Shaw, said: “I’m delighted to be able to launch KCOM’s 120 year anniversary celebrations and this banner in our prime city centre location is certainly an eye catching way to do it. “It’s wonderful to be part of a business with so much history and heritage that is part of the very fabric of this region, but also a company that doesn’t rest on its laurels and continues to this day to pioneer new technology and push the boundaries of what is possible to deliver the best possible service for its customers. “KCOM has played a huge role in the life of this region for 120 years and will continue to do for the next 120.”
Hull youngsters were able to learn about staying safe online when they joined the KCOM Community Team for Safer Internet Day at the MKM Stadium. Forty kids from four Hull schools joined KCOM and Hull and East Yorkshire Children’s University to mark Safer Internet Day on Tuesday, 6 February. As well as learning about the history of telecommunications, and how it has changed rapidly in the 120 years since KCOM was formed, they also learned tips that can help them to spot dangerous situations online and what to do about them. The international day is designed for children and young people who have grown up immersed in technology, including life online, from a young age. The aim behind the day is to create a better internet for all and raise awareness of online dangers while helping children to learn the tools they need to stay safe. As well as learning lots throughout the day the group also got to visit Hull City’s stadium, and even had a meet and greet with Roary The Tiger, the Hull City mascot.
Students at one north Lincolnshire college will have more comfortable surroundings to socialise in thanks to a donation by KCOM. The Hull-based broadband provider, which celebrates its 120th anniversary this year, has donated two van loads of quality office furniture to Engineering UTC Northern Lincolnshire, in Scunthorpe, which will now be used to create a comfortable breakout space for its sixth form students. The bucket chairs, benches, lamps, fridges, tables and stools were delivered by KCOM engineers Thomas Nielsen and Owen Norris before students helped unpack and transport the goods to their new common room home, which is undergoing a makeover to make it a more appealing space to socialise. Jen Vincent, North Lincs UTC Director of Business Engagement, said: “We’ve worked really closely with KCOM for a couple of years now and they really appreciate the importance of supporting students through ongoing education to help them achieve success in life. “This furniture will be used on a daily basis in the common room and make it a much more appealing place for our students to be. I think they’re also really looking forward to having their own fridge!”
It’s Ready Sheddy Go online for Epworth charity thanks to KCOM
