Kuwaiti-UK Bank sets an example in ethical corporate responsibility

Gatehouse Bank (Gatehouse), a Shariah compliant wholesale investment bank based in the City of London and regulated by the FSA, is supporting a UK youth mentoring initiative called Mosaic, as it launches a national business competition for school pupils in Great Britain, with the support of the UK Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, Nick Boles MP.

The Kuwaiti-UK bank will be setting an example in ethical and corporate social responsibility standards, driving an internal culture of corporate citizenship that complements the wider principles of an ethical banking model by giving back to its local community.

As Mr Richard Thomas OBE, CEO of Gatehouse Bank, explains: “As a shariah compliant investment bank our entire business model runs on the principles of ethical banking, and a core part of our corporate objective revolves around supporting wider social responsibility programmes. Corporate Social Responsibility has long been at the core of Islamic societies and, with this principle being so fundamental to our own operations, working with other business leaders at an international level to share these principles and discuss how we can use our business knowledge to make a demonstrable difference is a really important objective that underpins our activities.”

Mosaic was set up in the UK by HRH The Prince of Wales in 2007 to create opportunities for young people of all backgrounds growing up in the most deprived communities. It has developed a series of mentoring programmes which have made a considerable impact on improving the attainment and aspirations of thousands of young people.

The Apax-Mosaic Enterprise Challenge competition has been launched as part of Global Entrepreneurship Week, which aims to inspire young people through business. The competition will involve over 3,000 students in 80 schools across the UK, supported by over 300 business mentors, as teams of children compete in an online business contest where they develop, market and sell a new product. The school pupils, aged 11-16, are supported by Mosaic business mentors, such as those from Gatehouse Bank, who help them to learn key components of business such as finance, sales, marketing and production.

As part of the competition launch, Mr Thomas led a delegation of influential business figures and senior leaders, who came together in a roundtable discussion held at Gatehouse Bank to debate the issues facing young people in some of the most disadvantaged communities in the UK.

Mr Thomas added: “The theme of Global Entrepreneurship Week is ‘Pass It On’ and the roundtable discussion focussed on how the business community can play an essential role in tackling some of Britain’s most pressing social issues. This is a fantastic initiative, and I’m keen to encourage other leaders to join the programme. In particular, the roundtable discussion gives us the opportunity to pass on our business knowledge to each other and discuss how young people most need our support and encouragement.”