Corporate responsibility

We recognise the enormity of the challenges facing the production and use of the built environment. As buildings consume nearly half the energy used in the UK, we all have a collective responsibility to reduce the amount of energy which is consumed both during construction activities, and also throughout the lifetime operation of the building.

Corporate responsibility (CR) is important to us so that we can meet and exceed client expectations, engage effectively with all our stakeholders, set standards for our supply chain, achieve efficiencies, and attract, retain and motivate the best staff. The importance we attach to CR also helps ensure that we are prepared for future changes in the industry. We therefore strive to be at the forefront of delivering sustainable solutions for clients and of implementing sustainable ‘best practice’ in our operations.

Our CR Challenge is organised under five related themes:-

  • Health and Safety – sending everyone safely at the end of each day
  • Environment – tackling climate change, minimising waste, improving resource efficiency, using more sustainable resources, minimising local pollution risks and enhancing local environments
  • People – Supporting and developing staff, attracting talent, and seeking, listening to and responding to staff feedback
  • Industry – Engaging our supply chain in our standards and expectations, supporting supply chain improvement with respect to sustainability, sourcing materials and labour locally, and understanding and responding to industry stakeholder views
  • Community – Understanding and supporting the local communities in which we work, and exciting young people about the construction/engineering industry’.

Our CR Challenge outlines the priorities and actions to be undertaken each year as part of this process. It defines our measures of success and allocates lead responsibility to relevant staff and functions. Success is monitored, and subsequent CR Challenges build on previous achievement.

Leadership and Communication are key to our approach

Our Director for Corporate Responsibility leads our sustainability agenda, with the backing of our Board and support and involvement of staff at all levels.

A flexible, positive approach on our projects

Instilling a flexible and positive approach to sustainability by staff working on our projects is part of our corporate culture, propagated by our management and by our corporate communications. This enables us to realise local opportunities for enhancing sustainability in an efficient way, aligned to corporate objectives and tailored to local circumstances.