Communication on Progress

Communication on Progress

Participant
Published
  • 14-Jun-2013
Time period
  • April 2012  –  March 2013
Format
  • Stand alone document – Basic COP Template
Differentiation Level
  • This COP qualifies for the Global Compact Active level
Self-assessment
  • Includes a CEO statement of continued support for the UN Global Compact and its ten principles
  • Description of actions or relevant policies related to Human Rights
  • Description of actions or relevant policies related to Labour
  • Description of actions or relevant policies related to Environment
  • Description of actions or relevant policies related to Anti-Corruption
  • Includes a measurement of outcomes
 
  • Statement of continued support by the Chief Executive Officer

  • Statement of the company's chief executive (CEO or equivalent) expressing continued support for the Global Compact and renewing the company's ongoing commitment to the initiative and its principles.

  • Our online corporate responsibility report, 'Operating Responsibly' acts as our primary Communication of Progress. It is updated annually in June, and reflects our activities and performance for year ended 31 March each year.

    This basic COP should be read in conjunction with the 'Operating Responsibility' site, which provides detailed information on the four focus areas.

    The following open letter, dated June 2013, is reproduced as a pdf in the 'Operating Responsibly' section of our corporate website, which can be found at www.nationalgrid.com.

    I am pleased to confirm that National Grid supports the ten principles of the Global Compact with respect to human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption. With this communication, we express our intent to advance those principles within our sphere of influence. We are committed to making the Global Compact and its principles part of the strategy, culture and day-to-day operations of our company, and to engaging in collaborative projects which advance the broader development goals of the United Nations, particularly the Millennium Development Goals. National Grid will make a clear statement of this commitment to our stakeholders and the general public.

    We recognise that a key requirement for participation in the Global Compact is the annual submission of a Communication on Progress (COP) that describes our company’s efforts to implement the ten principles. We support public accountability and transparency, and therefore commit to report on progress within one year of joining the Global Compact, and annually thereafter according to the Global Compact COP policy.

    Yours sincerely

    Steve Holliday
    Chief Executive

Human Rights
  • Assessment, policy and goals

  • Description of the relevance of human rights for the company (i.e. human rights risk-assessment). Description of policies, public commitments and company goals on Human Rights.

  • National Grid operates in the UK and US only, so is not exposed to the same level of human rights risks experienced by many multinational companies. We do not own or operate manufacturing facilities.

    Our Global Standards of Ethical Business Conduct set to our overall policy on issues such as employee rights and relations, corruption, ant-bribery, safety and environmental management.

    We also have a Supplier Code of Conduct, which sets out our expectations of those who work for us. It can be found at:

    http://www.nationalgrid.com/NR/rdonlyres/027656B7-ABDB-40C0-9886-B527962B60A6/46631/SupplierCodeofConductFinalUK2011.pdf

  • Implementation

  • Description of concrete actions to implement Human Rights policies, address Human Rights risks and respond to Human Rights violations.

  • National Grid operates in the UK and US only, so is not exposed to the same level of human rights risks experienced by many multinational companies. We do not own or operate manufacturing facilities.

    Our primary human rights-related actions are associated with our employees and our suppliers. Our actions and performance on employee related issues (e.g. safety, health, inclusion & diversity and talent & skills, can be found at:

    http://www.nationalgrid.com/corporate/Our+Responsibility/Our+Impacts

    and

    http://www.nationalgrid.com/corporate/Our+Responsibility/Reporting+our+Performance

  • Measurement of outcomes

  • Description of how the company monitors and evaluates performance.

  • Our key performance indicators in this area can be found at:

    http://www.nationalgrid.com/corporate/Our+Responsibility/Reporting+our+Performance/

Labour
  • Assessment, policy and goals

  • Description of the relevance of labour rights for the company (i.e. labour rights-related risks and opportunities). Description of written policies, public commitments and company goals on labour rights.

  • We aim to develop and operate our business with an inclusive and diverse culture, ensuring equal opportunity in recruitment, career development, training and reward for all employees regardless of race, gender, nationality, age, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion and background. Where existing employees become disabled, our policy is to provide continued employment and training wherever practical.

    Our labour related policies and commitments can be found at:

    http://www.nationalgrid.com/corporate/Our+Responsibility/Managing+our+Impacts/Ourpolicies

    Our Global Standards of Ethical Business Conduct are available via the same URL

  • Implementation

  • Description of concrete actions taken by the company to implement labour policies, address labour risks and respond to labour violations.

  • Our actions and performance on labour-related issues (safety, health, inclusion & diversity and talent & skills and business conduct), can be found at:

    http://www.nationalgrid.com/corporate/Our+Responsibility/Our+Impacts

    Information on safety also covers public and contractor safety.

  • Measurement of outcomes

  • Description of how the company monitors and evaluates performance.

  • Our actions and performance on labour related issues (safety, health, inclusion & diversity and talent & skills and business conduct) can be found at:

    http://www.nationalgrid.com/corporate/Our+Responsibility/Our+Impacts

    Information on safety also covers public and contractor safety.

Environment
  • Assessment, policy and goals

  • Description of the relevance of environmental protection for the company (i.e. environmental risks and opportunities). Description of policies, public commitments and company goals on environmental protection.

  • By embedding environmental sustainability into our decision-making we aim to create value, preserve natural resources and respect the interests of our communities.

    Our approach to environmental sustainability has involved developing our long-term strategy under the banner of 'Our Contribution'. This responds to external drivers and input from stakeholders, drives efficiency, supports growth and profitability, and aims to build a culture of sustainability within our organisation. It also aims to integrate sustainability into our decision-making and everyday activities, so we can protect and preserve natural resources, as well as respect the interests of the communities in which we operate.

    Our company-wide environment policy can be found at:

    http://www.nationalgrid.com/corporate/Our+Responsibility/Managing+our+Impacts/Ourpolicies

    It is also applicable to our suppliers and contractors.

  • Implementation

  • Description of concrete actions to implement environmental policies, address environmental risks and respond to environmental incidents.

  • Our material environmental issues and actions are described at:

    http://www.nationalgrid.com/corporate/Our+Responsibility/Our+Impacts

    and

    http://www.nationalgrid.com/corporate/Our+Responsibility/Our+Impacts/Envpol

  • Measurement of outcomes

  • Description of how the company monitors and evaluates environmental performance.

  • Our key performance indicators relating to the environment can be found at:

    http://www.nationalgrid.com/corporate/Our+Responsibility/Our+Impacts/Envpol

Anti-Corruption
  • Assessment, policy and goals

  • Description of the relevance of anti-corruption for the company (i.e. anti-corruption risk-assessment). Description of policies, public commitments and company goals on anti-corruption.

  • Conducting our business in an ethical manner is extremely important to us and at the heart of our policy of 'doing the right thing' is our Global Standards of Ethical Business Conduct , which sets out standards by which we operate.

    Our Global Standards of Ethical Business Conduct can be found at:

    http://www.nationalgrid.com/corporate/Our+Responsibility/Managing+our+Impacts/Ourpolicies

    Other policies, including whistle-blower provisions, can be found at the same URL.

    Our Supplier Code of conduct can be found at:

    http://www.nationalgrid.com/NR/rdonlyres/027656B7-ABDB-40C0-9886-B527962B60A6/46631/SupplierCodeofConductFinalUK2011.pdf

  • Implementation

  • Description of concrete actions to implement anti-corruption policies, address anti-corruption risks and respond to incidents.

  • National Grid operates in the UK and US only, so its exposure to corruption risks are generally less than those for many other multinational companies.

    Information on our approach to bribery and corruption can be found in our Standards of Ethical Business Conduct (URL provided above).

  • Measurement of outcomes

  • Description of how the company monitors and evaluates anti-corruption performance.

  • Information on our performance in this area can be found at:

    http://www.nationalgrid.com/corporate/Our+Responsibility/Reporting+our+Performance/Employees/ethicalconduct