Sustainability policy example

In order to develop and continually improve our sustainability performance we must engage our supply chain. In order to do this we will:

• work to ensure that our suppliers treat their people fairly and with respect and that there is a culture of equality and equity
• wherever possible we will employ local people and procure local produce and encourage our suppliers to do the same
• encourage and influence suppliers to investigate the environmental impact, including resource use, waste, energy and climate change, of their business process or product and then to adopt practices that reduce that impact, and
• assess the Health and Safety systems of our suppliers and monitor their compliance with our requirements.

We will engage our supply chain in sustainability by:

• using sustainability criteria, where appropriate, in the award of contracts
• requiring, where possible, that potential suppliers submit prices for alternative more sustainable products
• ensuring that any alternatives are given due cost benefit consideration prior to award
• informing our customers of more sustainable alternatives
• encouraging the assessment and monitoring of our suppliers’ supply chain to ensure that their sustainability risks, including Health and Safety, ethical, environmental, social and economic impacts are understood and managed, and
• ensuring that we deal with all our suppliers and potential suppliers fairly and ethically and in accordance with our procurement policy.