EAST MIDLANDS
SUSTAINABLE
www.emc-dnl.co.uk/sustainability
Grants to support journey to net zero
A scheme that supports businesses in Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire to reduce carbon emissions and implement energy- saving initiatives is now available in Leicestershire after £1.7m was made available in new funding. Energy for Business, delivered by the
energy innovation and collaboration team at the University of Nottingham, has backed businesses in Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire since 2016. The new programme enables Leicestershire businesses to access support until June 2023, with funds comprised of the European Regional Development Fund alongside private and University of Nottingham matched contributions. Colette McHugh Putman, who leads the
energy innovation and collaboration team, said: “This new funding will help promote business growth, accelerate energy initiatives and benefit the local economy.”
For more information, visit
www.nottingham.ac.uk/energyforbusiness, or contact the energy innovation and collaboration team on
energy@nottingham.ac.uk or 0115 74 84969.
Green Entrepreneurs Fund now available
Businesses in Derbyshire with green aspirations can apply for a slice of a new £2m funding pot. Derbyshire County Council introduced its
Green Entrepreneurs Fund at an information session delivered by the Chamber last month. The fund, created in collaboration with
the University of Derby as part of its Covid- 19 economic strategy and climate change commitments, will help SMEs to develop and invest in low-carbon energy and carbon reduction schemes alongside training. Derbyshire-based SMEs employing up to
250 staff and micro-businesses with up to 10 staff are eligible to apply for grants, supporting businesses to reduce their carbon footprint, retrain in low-carbon skills and develop innovative solutions in low- carbon schemes.
For more information, visit
www.derbyshire.gov.uk/business/green- entrepreneurs-fund
44 business network April 2021
Modern slavery and the ESG agenda
For ambitious businesses that want to attract investors, win contracts and supply the public sector, a good understanding of the ESG (environmental, social and governance) agenda is the way forward – but one aspect of this that often gets overlooked is modern slavery. Paul Callum (pictured), director of niche risk management consultancy Resilient World Solutions, explains how to start this journey by completing the Modern Slavery Assessment Tool (MSAT).
Financial institutions are increasingly looking to invest in companies with good ESG strategies and structures. Jill Thomas, of Future Life Wealth Management, says the FTSE 100 companies with the highest yields during coronavirus have been those leading on ESG. The pandemic has provided plenty of opportunity for reflection. We’ve seen inequities in society exposed and a focus on issues like labour exploitation and modern slavery – none more so than in Leicester, where the textile industry was the focus of national reporting.
‘The Government has introduced its own modern slavery assessment tool (MSAT), which identifies and manages risks’
In Leicester, this focus on labour exploitation caused significant reputational damage, not only to the textile industry but to the city and East Midlands.
MODERN SLAVERY RISING UP LEGISLATIVE AGENDA The “S” in ESG is broad and aligned to the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, which many corporates base their due diligence strategies on. Modern slavery legislation is developing in countries including Australia, Canada, Switzerland, Hong Kong and France. In 2015, the UK introduced its Modern Slavery Act. Section 54, covering transparency in supply
chains, requires a commercial organisation with a total turnover of £36m or more to prepare a “slavery and human trafficking statement”. This details the steps an organisation has
taken during the financial year to ensure slavery and human trafficking isn’t taking place in its supply chains. It’s expected the public sector will be forced to report in the same way when changes in the act are made this year.
SOCIAL COMPLIANCE ISN’T JUST A BIG BUSINESS PROBLEM The East Midlands is a hub of SMEs supplying industry and Government on projects like HS2. There’s a range of social compliance
“standards” in place that some corporates want businesses to undertake before they engage commercially, and this requirement is growing. The Government has introduced its own
modern slavery assessment tool (MSAT), which identifies and manages risks. It helps public sector organisations to improve protections and reduce the risk of worker exploitation in their supply chains. As well as the moral benefits of protecting
vulnerable workers, social accountability action helps SMEs to improve social value, as well as manage labour risks, enhance their corporate reputation, strengthen shareholder confidence, improve employee recruitment and retention, and create more sustainable business relationships. Embedding the MSAT is a good starting point
for SMEs intending to supply into the public sector – but it should only be the only start of a continuous improvement programme.
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