Committed to public services

We believe that the only way to create long term value is through sustainable, responsible growth. Consequently, we seek to embed responsible practice in everything that we do. We evaluate our corporate responsibility impacts, achievements and strategy through the three pillars of our Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Framework:

• Creating Shared Value
• Social Responsibility
• Environmental Impact

Our ESG Steering Group guides implementation. Its outputs are monitored by the Chief Executive, who along with the Executive Board ultimately decides the ESG strategy.

Creating shared value

We strive to maximise the positive impact of our work, dealing openly, honestly and fairly with all stakeholders and, in the process, building mutually beneficial partnerships.

We encourage our stakeholders to carry out socially responsible practices and use energy/resources efficiently.

Communication is key to ensuring continued successful relationships with our stakeholders.

Environmental impact

At NEC, we’re committed to reducing our carbon emissions and over the last few years, we’ve been working hard ensuring we’ve got a framework in place that keeps us on track to hit our Net Zero 2030 targets.

Carbon emissions have a devastating effect on the environment, so by reducing our carbon footprint through a variety of initiatives to achieve Net Zero, we can demonstrate our commitment to a sustainable future.

We’ve been busy with various initiatives and activities to help us achieve our targets, some of which include:

• Continuous bin liners – We’re installing continuous bin liners at all our sites in the UK which enables us to reduce the amount of plastic we are using on a day-to-day basis.
• LED Lighting installation – by the end of August this year, we’ll have installed LED lighting in our Alderley Edge, Hartlepool, Wrexham, and Nottingham Charles Way offices.
• Reduced paper usage – we’ve reduced the amount of paper used through copying and printing.
• Reduced energy consumption – our energy consumption in our offices in 2022 is much lower compared to the same period in 2019. This is due to the closure and relocation of our Hemel, Bracknell and Nottingham offices. We reduced the size of these offices in line with the anticipated utilisation that hybrid working would impact.
• Increased recycling – we saw an increase in the amount of waste recycled in our offices in 2022. We’ve also arranged for the PPE used through our Diabetic Eye Screening services to be recycled and used in the manufacturing process of storm boards.
• Reduction in mileage – While we saw a significant reduction in mileage during the pandemic, with our video conferencing facilities , flexible working arrangements and change in working practices we don’t expect to get back to pre-pandemic levels.
• ISO 14001 Accreditation – all our UK sites are 14001 accredited and we continue to have internal and BSI external audits taking place throughout the year. We’re also working with India to include the Worli and Arioli offices in the ISO 14001 scope.
• Supporting our people and customers in looking for low carbon solutions and environmentally sensitive ways to work.
• Monitoring our carbon emissions through our robust Environmental Management System, reviewing the data to make adjustments and improvements.

Social responsibility

We consider the positive impact our business can have both through our client partnerships and the active contribution of our people.

• Our colleagues in India supported the NGO Akshaya Patra Foundation which strives to eliminate classroom hunger by operating a school lunch programme. Our colleagues helped by distributing ‘Happiness Kits’ made up of food items along with an educational activity book so that the children could also continue learning throughout the Covid-19 pandemic.
• We continue to support our two UK corporate charity partners; Cancer Research UK and Alzheimer’s Society through various fundraising events and volunteering activities. We raised over £7,000 from our annual Christmas raffle last year! In 2023, colleagues have been  and are taking part in challenges ranging from Trek26, Shine Night Walks, Memory Walks and more in order to raise funds and awareness for amazing causes.

In addition to supporting our local communities through fundraising activities, we work to deliver Social Value as a contractual commitment through some of our client contracts.

Under the Public Services (Social Value) Act 2012, the public sector must maximise social value effectively and comprehensively through its procurement processes. We are working with several local authorities to deliver various initiatives throughout the lifetime of the contract. These include donations for equipment and resources to local charity and voluntary organisations to assist with addressing local needs, such as homelessness and education for young people. We also offer work experience placements and apprenticeships for school leavers where appropriate.

Our People

We are all responsible for delivering to our Environment, Social and Governance framework. Our most valuable resource is the people we employ.

We aim to be an employer of choice for people of any gender from a variety of backgrounds, and to promote respect for the individual and equal opportunities. We are committed to eliminating discrimination and encouraging diversity. Our aim is for our workforce to be truly representative of all sections of the wider community in which we operate and for each employee to feel respected and able to commit their best.

Through the Equality, Diversity and Dignity policy and mandatory annual training for all employees we promote respect for individuals and equality in recruitment and opportunity for career development and promotion. We commit to regularly reviewing our recruitment and selection process to identify and remove barriers to establish a diverse workforce.

We comply with the Equality Act 2010. Our employment practices and policies have been developed, taking into account good practice guidelines issued by the Equal Opportunities Commission, Commission of Racial Equality, Disability Rights Commission, and all relevant statutory requirements.

However, we recognise that an effective policy of promoting equal opportunities goes beyond complying with the basic statutory requirements. We continuously monitor and develop our employment practices and policies to encourage equality of opportunity, and to eliminate all forms of unlawful discrimination.

We have worked with external consultants to develop a new career framework, including gender-neutral role definitions. Women now make up a third of the leadership team and we continue to bring women into rewarding careers where we can, including through our apprenticeship and graduate schemes. Our most recent gender pay gap analysis uncovered only minor variations.

We seek to improve performance by educating and training our colleagues in their corporate governance, social and environmental responsibilities.

We maintain a register of legal and mandatory requirements as part of our ISO accreditations.

Last year we employed 21 apprentices within our business.

You can view a copy of our Modern Slavery Statement here.

You can view a copy of our Environmental Policy Statement here.

You can view our Carbon Reduction Plan here.

Our Colleague Recognition Scheme

Our recognition scheme, Values in Practice, celebrates colleagues who live and breathe our values. Has someone at NEC made a difference and gone the extra mile for you? Click the link below to nominate them for an award today!