ESG is one of the most welcome additions to the business agenda in a generation. The cumulative impact of the business sector making a positive contribution to the environment and communities around them is vast. We are delighted to be working with so many employers who take their role seriously, to share ideas and to look at our own practices. This can help with producing ideas on improvement that you may never have considered – you ‘don’t know what you don’t know’ after all.

We sought the help from University of Leeds Sustainability Consultancy Society, a new society founded this year by a group of postgraduate students from the University of Leeds. They are comprised primarily of sustainability-focused students eager to apply their knowledge to real-world challenges.  They are committed to generating positive social and environmental impact in our local community. Their mission is to provide free sustainability advice to create social and environmental impact for our local area while allowing students to gain valuable experience within the sustainability sector.

In other words, a great opportunity for us to help the students and for us to benefit from the analysis they did on us!

Dan Whetton from the University of Leeds Sustainability Consultancy Society has a keen interest in ESG disclosure and promoting standardised ESG practices across the UK. Dan assisted ourselves through the following:

1. Analysis of Pratap Partnership’s ESG policy.
2. ‘E’, ‘S’, and ‘G’ short-medium term recommendations.
3. A move towards reporting using a structured framework.
4. Long-term recommendations.
5. Concluding remarks.

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This was a really exciting collaboration for all intended, and we are proud to say that we’ve already implemented the following recommendations:

• Environmental: Sustainable transportation modes help to reduce traffic congestion and carbon emissions. We have implemented a ‘Cycle to Work Scheme’ to encourage our staff members to utilise a more environmentally friendly transport system. We have also been pleased to include two of our employees into our EV vehicle salary sacrifice scheme in October.
• Social: LGBTQ+ and disabled people are often less supported here nationwide, especially as health and sexuality are first and foremost private matters and many in these groups choose not to publicly identify themselves in the workplace. We changed our toilets to be gender-neutral and included Sanitary Bins in all toilets so that our employees and guests feel more welcomed in an inclusive environment.
• Governance: Improved governance includes clear and regular communication with stakeholders and transparent reporting on the organisation's performance and results. Following Pratap Partnership’s Board Meetings, we now disclose performance data with our employees, along with how they are directly benefiting.

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We look forward to implementing the longer-term objectives; and bringing you our next Quarterly Update.

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Thank you for taking the time to read this update.

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