Running our business has an effect on society and we have a responsibility to our clients, our employees and contractors as well as the broader community in which we operate. We are committed to taking responsibility for our actions and encourage a positive contribution towards improving standards for our clients and employees, minimising our impact on the environment and improving the quality of the local community.
By putting ESG into practice, we are committed, wherever possible, to:
This policy is communicated to our staff, clients and other stakeholders by means of our website, publicity materials, and internally through our Intranet and SharePoint.
We provide our staff with training on our ESG strategy and this policy and seek to raise awareness of any negative impacts of our business and methods to reduce them.
Ian Jones is the firm’s nominated officer and has overall responsibility for our EGS strategy and for implementing this policy. He has a key role in ensuring the systems and controls we have in place are effective.
All members of staff have a role to play in complying with our ESG objectives and are encouraged to make further suggestions in relation to initiatives we could undertake. Suggestions should be made to Ian Jones.
We are fully committed to the highest possible standards of openness, honesty and accountability. In line with that commitment and in accordance with our Whistleblowing Policy, we actively encourage all staff members who have serious concerns about any real or perceived departure from the high ethical standard that we set to voice those concerns openly. Our Whistleblowing Policy can be found on the internal Intranet and on SharePoint.
We are committed to ensuring our policy remains effective. As part of our ongoing commitment, this policy is reviewed at least annually, and any necessary amendments are made to the policy, as appropriate.
Our conduct
We aim to adopt the highest professional standards and not to act in such a way as to compromise our firm’s integrity.
We actively promote respect between our staff members in their dealings with each other and with clients and other third parties.
Our working environment
We recognise that our staff are our most important resource. We actively seek to offer our staff a positive and healthy working environment and ensure that they have rewarding careers and job satisfaction.
We maintain an Office Manual, which sets out the rights and expectations of all members of staff. The Office Manual can be found on the Intranet and on SharePoint.
We seek to ensure that all staff have access to the training they need both for their own development and to enable them to deliver a high-quality service. Our procedures in relation to training and development can be found within our Office Manual and our Learning & Development Plan.
We consider all staff members to be equal and we aim to create a working environment which is free of unlawful discrimination. In this regard, we maintain an Equality & Diversity Policy.
We are committed to delivering a high level of service to all our clients. We understand that our business exists in a very competitive market and in order to retain our clients we need to deliver a professional and courteous service.
Wherever possible, we take steps to promote equal opportunity in relation to access to the legal services that we provide. We take account of the diversity of the communities we serve in order to ensure that, subject to funding constraints, our services are accessible to all clients.
We are committed to eliminating unlawful discrimination and to promoting equality and diversity in our professional dealings with suppliers and other third parties. Our Equality and Diversity Policy can be found on our website, the internal Intranet and on SharePoint.
We endeavour to enter into clear and fair contracts with our suppliers. We commit to the timely settlement of suppliers’ invoices.
Wherever possible, we aim to support the local economy by contracting with local suppliers.
We are committed to behaving responsibly and to minimising our impact on the environment. We aim to minimise our impact on the environment by:
