CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY STATEMENT 2008 In Bank f Ireland Grup, we recgnise the imprtance f lng-term cmmitment, c-peratin, trust and integrity in the cnduct f sustainable relatinships with grups f peple wh have a key stakehlding interest in ur business. In additin t ur stckhlders these include custmers, emplyees, investrs, regulatrs and business partners. We als recgnise a wider respnsibility twards the cmmunities in which we d business, and the envirnment in which we perate. Since frmalising ur apprach t Crprate Respnsibility in 2003, the Grup has received cnsiderable independent external recgnitin f its prgramme including nging membership f the FTSE4Gd index - a listing f cmpanies that manage their scial, ethical and envirnmental impacts. In this, ur fifth successive Crprate Respnsibility reprt, we give an insight int sme f the activity taking place thrughut the Grup that demnstrates ur cmmitment t the principles f being a gd Crprate Citizen. PLAYING OUR PART IN THE COMMUNITY Give Tgether In last year's reprt, we gave details abut Give Tgether ur new cmmunity investment initiative launched in 2007.Give Tgether is based n the strng eths f vlunteering by ur emplyees and facilitates thse wh wish t vlunteer their time and supprt causes that are imprtant t them. Thrugh Give Tgether, Bank f Ireland prvides ne day f paid leave t each emplyee each year t vlunteer their time t a cause f their chice. We have als put in place an annual fund t allw the Bank t cntribute t emplyee fundraising and supprt their vlunteering. Since the launch f Give Tgether in March 2007, emplyees have truly embraced the pprtunity t reach ut t their cmmunities and supprt the causes they hld dear. In the last year ver 1,800 emplyees have participated in fundraising activities and a further 1,000 have used their vlunteer days - the equivalent f almst 4 years f paid wrk hurs given t their cmmunities and chsen charities in time. In additin, the funds raised by emplyees with the help f Give Tgether, has amunted t 4.5m. T date ver 800 charitable / cmmunity grups have benefited frm Give Tgether acrss a wide range f different causes in the different markets in which the Grup perates. Breakdwn by Cause Animal Care 3% Arts 1% Children's Needs 15% Cmmunity 12% Educatin 9% Hmelessness 3% Hspital & Hspice 15% Nature Preservatin 1%
Scientific Research 9% Scuts Girl Guides 2% Special Olympics 3% Sprt 8% Supprt Grups 11% Third Wrld Supprt 8% We als prvide extensive infrmatin abut vlunteering and prmte vlunteering pprtunities n ur emplyee intranet, which we receive frm the cmmunity and charitable sectr. This facilitates the participatin f emplyees wh might nt have a persnal favurite charity r thse wh are lking t make a cntributin. "It's the whle prmtin f the scheme that anyne with a slight inclinatin t vlunteer might be mre encuraged...there is a structure there, clearly highlighting the bank's supprt f vlunteering in the cmmunity". Extract f emplyee research 2007, cnducted t ascertain views f Give Tgether. Millennium Schlars Trust This is the penultimate year f schlarships being awarded by the Bank f Ireland Millennium Schlars Trust. Since it started in 2000, almst 500 schlarships have been granted t students wh therwise may nt have been able t fulfill their ptential r persnal gals by attending 3rd level educatin. Fr the final tw years f the Trust, the number f schlarships n ffer has been increased t 100 each year s that even mre students will be able t participate. Cmmenting n the imprtance f the Millennium Schlars Trust at the Annual Awards Event, the frmer Irish Minister Fr Educatin & Science, Mary Hanafin T.D. stressed the imprtance f widening access t third level educatin and highlighted the psitive impact that increased investment, resurces and partnerships has had n higher educatin. Withywd Bank f Ireland UK cntinues with its supprt f an Academy in Withywd - a disadvantaged area in Suth Bristl. In additin t the initial dnatin f 200,000, a vluntary scheme was launched fr lcal Temple Quay staff in Bristl t help students t design and deliver the 'Preparatin fr Wrking Life' part f their syllabus. Since Octber 2007, three new wrk streams have been develped t help students including CV Writing and Interview Skills. Classes are taught and delivered by 65 Bank staff in 24 sessins and 6 visits t the Bank's ffice in Bristl. These prvide the pprtunity fr students t wrk with a variety f adults in a frmal manner, helping t imprve scial skills and t intrduce wrking life utside the schl gates. PLAYING OUR PART IN THE MARKETPLACE In the Grup's Retail Divisin in Ireland, the Bank launched a Plish Business Prpsitin in June 2007 in respnse t the increase in Plish custmers setting up businesses here in Ireland. Our highly cmpetitive Business Start Up package was develped t help these custmers with their specific needs. Since June, ver 400 Plish Business custmers have pened Business accunts with us. We have received significant interest frm the Branch netwrk, with many branches hsting their wn Plish evenings. A key part f ur Plish Business custmer prpsitin is ur dedicated supprt panel which has established links with slicitrs and accuntants thrughut Ireland wh have Plish speaking persnnel. This develpment builds n previus initiatives t address the financial needs f the grwing migrant ppulatin in Ireland.
In ur Life Assurance Business in Ireland, we annunced ur participatin in the Hepatitis C insurance scheme perated by the Irish Health Service Executive (HSE). The Hepatitis C Insurance Scheme was launched t make life insurance cver available at nrmal csts t thse wh acquired Hepatitis C and/r HIV thrugh State-prvided infected bld r bld prducts. Many f thse affected wuld have previusly been unable t secure life assurance, making it impssible t prvide prtectin fr their families r even take ut a mrtgage. Participatin in the HSE scheme is an imprtant scial initiative and the prcess develped will serve thse eligible in a sensitive and efficient manner. The Grup received cnsiderable external accreditatin in 2007, reflecting its psitining in the varius markets in which it perates as fllws: Bank f Ireland has been listed amng the Tp 100 Wrld Banks in The Banker magazine'stp 1,000 Wrld Banks 2007 ranking. In their 38th annual glbal listing, and their mst cmprehensive survey yet, Bank f Ireland achieved an internatinal ranking f 80. Published in the July 2007 issue f The Banker, the Tp 1,000 Wrld Banks is a cmprehensive listing f the wrld's leading cmmercial banks. As well as assessing the strength f banks wrldwide, the Tp 1,000 listing takes int accunt a number f perfrmance indicatrs, such as real prfits grwth and return n assets. The ranking is als brken dwn by cuntry and regin. 365nline.cm was named Best Online Banking service at the Irish Internet Assciatin's (IIA) Net Visinary Awards in Nvember 2007. This award came n the back f a 10 millin investment and the successful launch f a range f new services intrduced n 365nline.cm in mid Octber 2007. The Bank als wn three awards, including "Custmer Service Team f the Year", at the Custmer Service Awards Ireland in June 2007. Bank f Ireland Life's Individual Pensins New Business Team wn bth the Financial Services Custmer Service Team f the Year and the grand prix Overall Custmer Service Team f the Year 2007, while the Custmer Prgramme Service Excellence Team were winners f Custmer Service Training Team f the Year award - fr the secnd year in a rw. The Custmer Service Awards are significant in that they recgnise excellence nt nly acrss financial services, but all Irish industry sectrs. Bristl & West Mrtgages achieved a five star rating in the prestigius Financial Adviser Service Awards. These awards are the UK industry's mst prestigius and are cnsidered t be the benchmark fr service standards. Only a handful f cmpanies receive a five star rating and this is the first time that we have achieved this level f recgnitin. The award is vted fr by thusands f Independent Financial Advisers and mrtgage brkers and is independently audited. PLAYING OUR PART IN THE WORKPLACE
The results f ur sixth Grup Emplyee Engagement survey issued in March 2008. These results act as a catalyst fr quality team discussins abut different aspects f emplyee engagement and what it means t wrk fr the Bank f Ireland Grup. We have seen a cnsistent imprvement in engagement levels acrss the rganisatin and have experienced the psitive impact it can have in supprting the grwth f ur business. Equally imprtant is the difference it can have in making Bank f Ireland a great place t wrk. Our rati f emplyee engagement acrss the Grup is at best practice level when benchmarked against external industry. The chart illustrates the Grup's percentile ranking when benchmarked shwing a cnsistent level f imprvement year n year. At Bank f Ireland Grup we are cmmitted t encuraging and supprting the educatin, training and develpment f ur emplyees in line with their rle, business requirements and individual develpment needs. Thrugh ur Learningzne service we deliver a wide range f learning and educatinal prgrammes via instructr led curses, technlgy based slutins and supprt fr 3rd level educatin prgrammes. During 2007/08, in excess f 22,000 student days f classrm training and 25,000 e learning prgrammes were cmpleted acrss the Grup. Bank f Ireland Private Banking recently cmmenced its secnd wealth academy prgramme aimed at prviding an excellent fundatin fr participants wh wish t pursue careers in wealth management. The Bank f Ireland Private Banking Academy was established in 2006 fr the purpse f accelerating the develpment f exceptinal client relatinship managers via an intensive, full time, six mnth training prgramme aimed at enhancing their skills, knwledge and expertise and psitining them t becme their clients' principle investment advisr. The prgramme was created in cnsultatin with Prfessr Jhn Murray, Chair in Business Studies, Trinity Cllege Dublin and is mdelled n a business schl cncept. As part f ur bjective t ensure ur emplyees share with stckhlders in the cntinuing success f the business, we launched ur 4th Save As Yu Earn (SAYE) scheme, which was taken up by 56% f eligible emplyees. SAYE allws emplyees t acquire Bank Stck at an attractively discunted price and prvides a cnvenient way t save. The Grup als cntinues t perate its annual Staff Stck Issue / Stck Incentive Plan. Bth schemes ffer emplyees an pprtunity t avail f a free stck award based n the perfrmance f the Grup ver the financial year. Bth the SAYE and Staff Stck Issue / Stck Incentive Plan schemes perated in the Grup are Revenue apprved schemes which means that bth schemes ffer emplyees the maximum tax efficiency permitted by the Revenue Cmmissiners and HM Revenue and Custms respectively.
PLAYING OUR PART IN THE ENVIRONMENT Bank f Ireland cntinues t enjy a unique psitin in the fast grwing carbn markets, as the sle dmestic bank with a transactinal capability in the Eurpean Unin Emissins Trading Scheme (EUETS). During the year we have develped a suite f risk management prducts fr Phase II f the Scheme. We have als extended ur activities in the carbn market int the UK and US with a number f initiatives. Our psitin as treasury specialists in this area has prmpted gvernmental and prfessinal bdies t actively seek ur input with regard t the future directin f the market and the frmulatin f plicy. During the past year, Bank f Ireland UK launched a new mrtgage that will ffset the carbn ftprint f the average hme. The Carbn Offset Mrtgage is designed t appeal t the increasing number f cnsumers wh wuld like t d their bit fr the envirnment. It wrks by ffsetting 100% f an average hme's carbn emissins fr each year f the prmtinal perid f the lan. The Giraffe Carbn Offset mrtgage wrks by retiring carbn credits frm the EUETS. This apprach cnfrms t the UK Gvernment's prpsed Cde f Best Practice fr Carbn Offsetting. Giraffe received this year's 'Yur Mney' magazine's Editr's Special Award. This award is given t an rganisatin that has delivered significant value t the cnsumer in a manner that falls utside the standard judging criteria f the ther prduct categries. 'Yur Mney' felt that the prduct was a very real effrt t invlve hme wners in taking an active part in helping the envirnment and giving the cnsumer an ptin t make a psitive cntributin t cutting carbn emissins. As a funding member f Business in the Cmmunity Ireland, we actively participate at all relevant pprtunities. During the year we have taken part in its "Sharing and Learning Wrking Grup" aimed at reducing the carbn ftprint. The purpse f the grup is t prvide an pprtunity fr cmpanies t share infrmatin and best practice arund the issue f climate change and t explre challenges and pprtunities facing cmpanies in this area. The cmpanies in this grup recgnise the rle that they can play in addressing the envirnmental challenges facing sciety tday, wrking twards imprving best practice in this area and measuring their carbn ftprint with the intentin f reducing it. In summary, 2007/08 marked further prgress in the Grup's Crprate Respnsibility Prgramme. We lk frward t reprting cntinued prgress in the cming year.