Corporate responsibility (CR) is about managing our business to make positive social, environmental and economic contributions to the regions in which we operate. We believe that addressing corporate responsibility makes sound business sense for our Company, as well as being crucial for risk and opportunity management, and is an essential part of good governance. We remain committed to being a responsible housebuilder and to reporting annually on our progress in this area.

Corporate responsibility helps us to:

• Identify and reduce business risk
• Demonstrate high standards of governance to stakeholders whose opinions and actions can have an impact on our business
• Meet customers’ needs and wants
• Attract and retain high calibre employees
• Save money and protect our reputation by managing our business effectively, rather than engaging in expensive or damaging remedial action
• Win competitive tenders on the basis of being able to deliver sustainable solutions
• Respond to the UK Government’s focus on building sustainable homes
• Identify opportunities for business development and innovation
• Anticipate and comply promptly with new legislation

We acknowledge the importance of sustainable development as defined by the Brundtland Commission as ‘development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs’*. CR is our Company’s response to the challenge of sustainable development and encompasses our work to tackle the global issue of climate change.

*The Brundtland Commission’s report entitled ‘Our Common Future’ (1987) coined this concise definition of sustainable development which has been subsequently widely used. The commission, officially titled ‘The World Commission on Environment and Development’ chaired by Norwegian Prime Minister Gro Harlem, was convened by the UN to ensure future economic growth that is both ‘forceful and at the same time socially and environmentally sustainable’.