E.ON and Coventry City Council’s Grub Hub come together to help connect the community

The event, which was recently held at Henley Green Community Centre, is part of E.ON’s 15-year strategic energy partnership (SEP) with Coventry City Council which aims to deliver positive change through sustainable improvements across the city.

The partnership is seeking to transform the city’s approach to decarbonisation, promote new investment in the city, and support growth of the city’s green economy. As part of a recent project decarbonising Coventry’s Public Buildings E.ON ensured they gave back to the local community, including volunteering and delivering energy advice to local residence at the Henley Green Grub Hub.

Cayleigh Beecham-Marshall, E.ON’s Social Value Manager for the Coventry Strategic Energy Partnership, said: “E.ON is committed to delivering social value initiatives across Coventry and part of our 15-year partnership with Coventry City Council, and this event formed part of our commitment to the city and its community. We’re proud to be able to support on-the-ground initiatives like this one, offering direct assistance to people at the grassroots level, and we’ll be delivering many more events like this as our partnership continues.”

More than 200 local people attended the event to experience a range of activities, all of which were hosted by a team of 16 volunteers from E.ON and the council, delivering a day of educational and practical support including:

• Digital inclusion support: helping residents on the day with any technical queries to help improve their digital skills and confidence, from using email to creating playlists. Attendees could also get free MiFi units - portable WiFi devices with two years’ free internet access – to help get them online, plus access to a free 40-minute e-learning programme on digital inclusion.
• Energy efficiency advice: E.ON Next volunteers were on hand to help the community with advice on how to save energy at home, plus any energy billing queries.
• Social Supermarket support: helping eligible attendees access discounted food bundles. Volunteers were on hand to organise food parcels and hand out food.

Cllr Jim O’Boyle, Cabinet Member for Jobs, Regeneration and Climate Change, said: “We partnered with E. ON with a clear goal in mind, improving the lives of Coventry residents. Grassroots events where we can work together to provide direct assistance to residents have an invaluable role to play in that.

“This event is a great example of the strength of this partnership and our city. Not only have we been able to help residents get access to better energy prices and the digital world, we’ve also helped support the essential work of the Henley Green Grub Hub. I look forward to seeing our partnership continue to grow and continue to change the lives of Coventrians.”

 Raj Rajendrakumar, Team Lead with the E.ON Next Customer Operations Team, said: “It was a privilege to join this event and speak to the local community. It was so rewarding to see people leave with smiles, not only having their food, clothing and other needs met by the incredible Grub Hub team but also having any energy queries and issues addressed. There's immense value in meeting our customers face-to-face, and we hope to be involved in future events to continue supporting the Coventry community as part of E.ON’s support for the city and its people.”

To find out more about how E.ON is supporting Coventry and its people, visit: eonenergy.com/sustainable-cities/coventry