Social
We are committed to making a positive impact in the local communities
where we operate and our social investment is based on three key themes:
Education: We will demonstrate our commitment to the next generation of talent by promoting science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) as the skills required for our industry in the future.
Community Engagement: Being socially responsible is integral to what we do. We aim to make a positive difference to the communities where we operate and seek ways to assist them.
People: We create a stimulating, fun and open work culture that promotes personal development and work/life balance, and celebrates success.
We pride ourselves on being a good neighbour, supporting charities and organisations in the Aberdeen and Teesside areas where our assistance, whether financial or hands-on, can make a genuine difference.
Our partner charities for 2024 are:
Camphill Wellbeing Trust in Aberdeenshire is a Scottish charity supporting the wellbeing of patients and their families through an integrated, person-centred approach to health, education and social care, focusing on learning disabilities, young people’s health, chronic conditions and residential therapeutic packages. We are helping the charity’s Compass Project, a centre for healthy, sustainable living, where teams from Kellas volunteer on a range of garden-based activities.
ALK Positive UK is a charity focused on helping everyone diagnosed in the UK with ALK-positive, a rare form of lung cancer, to receive the best care possible and live their best lives for as long as possible through support, empowerment and advocacy.
Balmedie Beach Wheelchairs provides free-of-charge access to a range of beach-friendly equipment, including wheelchairs, baby strollers and walking frames, enabling families and friends of all ages and abilities to spend time together at Balmedie Beach in Aberdeenshire. The all-terrain equipment is available for anyone to rent and is making a huge difference to the local community by promoting inclusivity and independence.
Charity Abseil for Spina Bifida
Sarah Anderson from our finance team and Daniel Campion from our H2NorthEast team completed a daring 131ft abseil in Aberdeen for Spina Bifida Hydrocephalus Scotland. A fantastic effort raising funds for the charity that provides a lifetime commitment of support and information to all those affected by spina bifida.
Donations for VSA Christmas Appeal
Kellas Christmas elves made themselves busy collating our team's donations for the VSA Christmas Appeal 2023 which is provided gifts for the vulnerable children and adults they support. For more than 150 years, VSA has been an essential source of care and support for the North East of Scotland.
Volunteering for Instant Neighbour Giving Tree appeal
Kellas team members took turns volunteering with Instant Neighbour to support their 2023 Giving Tree appeal, helping pack up toys, clothes, books and other gifts that were generously donated by many local businesses to be distributed to children across Aberdeen city and shire.
Mentoring success with MCR Pathways
MCR Pathways is a national, award-winning mentoring programme with a vision for all young people to experience equality of education outcomes, career opportunities and life chances. Its school-based mentoring programme supports young people to find, grow and use their talents. They help young people to build confidence, broaden aspirations and explore their future pathways. Julie Jamieson, Kellas Office Manager, has been working with MCR Pathways for a number of years and was delighted that she and her young person were chosen for a photoshoot and filming session. After completing her mentoring training in 2019, Julie was matched with her young person very soon afterwards and has been meeting with them every week since. Julie said: "It has been such a rewarding experience and I have learnt so much while providing some support and making an impact to my young person's life."
Green fingers for Camphill's Compass Project
Team Kellas completed another fantastic day of volunteering in August 2023 with the Compass Project in Aberdeen. Compass is part of the Camphill Wellbeing Trust, one of our partner charities. The project is transforming the site of a former school into a centre demonstrating practical solutions for healthy, sustainable living and our day involved a wide range of tasks:
- Constructing the project’s second of two composting toilets
- Composting and watering no-dig beds where we planted vegetables
- Picking veg that we then washed and weighed into bundles ready for selling
- Erecting trellis out of tree branches for climber plants
- Some of the crew even showed their creative side by painting signs for the project’s many spaces where they are growing fruits and vegetables
All in all, it was a productive and enjoyable day away from the office and we look forward to being back at the Compass Project in the future to help out again.
Kellas Kiltwalkers raise £1425 for Friends of ANCHOR
Massive well done to our Kellas Kiltwalkers who took on The Kiltwalk Mighty Stride in June 2023, walking 17.8 miles from Aberdeen’s Duthie Park to Banchory and raising a fantastic £1425 for Friends of ANCHOR! Thank you to everyone who donated to support the team and a very worthy cause.
Problem solving with first year high school students
Julie, Pauline and Kate from the Kellas team worked with S1 classes at Hazlehead Academy in Aberdeen as part of an Interdisciplinary Learning series in collaboration with DWY (Developing the Young Workforce North East). The entire S1 year group was participating in the initiative to encourage skills development in teamwork, problem solving, decision making and attitude, working alongside volunteers from local businesses. Kellas led a fun activity with our classes – the Egg Drop Challenge – which challenged the young people to create a device to protect an egg so it could be dropped from 2 meters without breaking. We split the classes into teams and gave them each a box full of different materials – including straws, string, blue tac, rubber bands, even marshmallows, and off course an egg – and they had 20 minutes to plan, design and make their egg protector. There was even a bit of maths thrown in, as each item had an associated cost, meaning the teams had to try and spend as little as possible by using as few items as possible. Thanks to DYW for supporting us and linking us up with the school.
Supporting Abernecessities with Christmas Eve boxes for local families
Kellas has been proud to partner with Abernecessities in recent years, providing financial and hands-on support. Sadly, 21.8% of children across Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire are living in poverty and since launching in March 2019, AberNecessities has helped over 10,000 children. We have supported the charity over the festive period by helping to prepare the thousands of Christmas Eve boxes they distribute throughout December to vulnerable families containing gifts, clothing and essential items.
Sarah takes on the Glencoe Marathon for Mental Health Aberdeen
Kellas supports many local charities through ad hoc donation requests and staff match funding. This is where team members can apply for Kellas to match the amount of cash they raise themselves (up to £250) for charities close to their hearts. In 2021, our Assistant Accountant, Sarah Anderson, took part in the epic Glencoe marathon and raised £1,238 for Mental Health Aberdeen!
Lending a hand to Archway for children and adults with learning disabilities
Archway was established in the 1980s and was the first parent-led charity in Aberdeen. At that time there was no respite provision in Aberdeen so a group of parents of children with learning disabilities got together to investigate the possibility of developing this service for their children. Today, Archway proud to still be parent-led and provides a range of community-based services which include permanent care, residential respite breaks, holiday respite breaks, emergency respite and day activities. They currently support nearly 200 children and adults with learning disabilities and their families. In September 2021, a team of volunteers from Kellas spent a half-day at Archway's facilities in Westburn Road, helping redecorate their games room located at the rear of the garden which is used regularly by residents to enjoy some time away from the house as well as for party nights, discos and karaoke!
CFINE donations help tackle poverty in NE Scotland
Community Food Initiatives North East (CFINE) is a social enterprise committed to social, environmental and economic development and works to cooperative, or ‘Community Development’ principles. Their mission is to improve health and wellbeing and the environment, tackle poverty and build resilience through a range of support and services for and with disadvantaged, vulnerable, low-income individuals, families and communities in North East Scotland. CFINE provides much needed support to the community and Kellas has supported the charity in recent years as their work is aligned with our principles and focus on supporting the communities in which we work. As part of our support, we provided food donations and support for specific fundraisers, such as the 'Appetite for Change' event where volunteers raised money by living on a budget of £2 per day for five days to help build awareness of food insecurity. One of our colleagues raised over £500 by completing this challenge, which was no easy task but a real eye opener as to what many people in our local community deal with on a daily basis.
The Great Gas Journey at Aberdeen Science Centre
Kellas partnered with Aberdeen Science Centre to develop and deliver an educational workshop that is giving children from across the North East of Scotland the opportunity to learn about where gas comes from, how it gets from the North Sea to our homes, and its importance, both in our day to day lives, and as part of the UK’s diverse energy mix. The workshop, called The Great Gas Journey, launched at the end 2017 and is part of Aberdeen Science Centre’s STEM learning programme. It involves children working in groups playing the role of a midstream infrastructure company like Kellas Midstream, to design and build a new gas pipeline that can transport gas safely, efficiently and cost-effectively from the North Sea, to an onshore processing terminal or refinery.
SensationALL DIY Day
Kellas partnered with Aberdeen-based charity SensationALL to provide much needed hands-on support. SensationALL provides support and multi-sensory experiences for children and adults with disabilities and multiple support needs, their families and associated professionals. In 2016, the charity was successful in its application for a Community Asset Transfer from Aberdeenshire Council for the Old Schoolhouse building in Westhill and is now working towards transforming it into a purpose-built facility. In 2017, Kellas Midstream funded the purchase and installation of a new summer house, and was involved in painting, gardening and general maintenance. In 2018, the team was involved in removing and replacing cupboards, painting the main activity room, and upgrading the outdoor garden space. Kellas also funded the cost of new flooring and storage units.
Children Challenging Industry
The team at the CATS terminal on Teesside partnered with Children Challenging Industry (CCI) to develop and deliver an educational programme designed to challenge negative perceptions about engineering and heavy industry. CCI is run by former primary school teachers who have a background and interest in STEM subjects, and a positive view of industry which they work hard to promote in the classroom. The programme took a class of year six pupils from a local primary school through a range of classroom-based teaching of STEM-related topics, followed by a visit to the CATS terminal during which the children, supported by the CATS team, carried out a number of engineering experiments which brought the classroom lessons to life on an industrial scale.
Kellas 2023 ESG Report
Read our 2023 ESG report which highlights how we are investing in our people and striving to make a positive impact in our local communities through education and charitable support.