Corporate responsibilities
General
The Directors accept that they have a responsibility to take account of, and to manage, the balance of interests between shareholders, employees, customers, suppliers and the community.
This includes taking account of the significance of social, environmental and ethical (SEE) matters to the business of the Group. They have identified and assessed the significant risks to the Group’s short and long term value arising from SEE matters as well as the opportunities to enhance value by an appropriate response. They have received adequate information during the year to make this assessment and account is taken of SEE matters in the training of Directors. They have ensured that the Group has in place effective systems for managing significant risks which, where relevant, incorporate performance management systems and appropriate remuneration incentives, including for the Executive Directors.
The Board reviews SEE matters regularly as part of its wider annual review of risks, including monitoring Group performance through annual reports on health and safety and on environmental management performance, and through quarterly performance statistics and indicators. Andrew McCree, CEO, has Board level responsibility for all SEE matters.
The Board ensures that systematic policies and procedures exist that define clear standards and expectations of corporate performance and employee behaviour, and that document and manage key risks in these areas. These policies and procedures form part of the Group’s integrated quality management system. Performance against this system is regularly audited and verified externally by Lloyds Register Quality Assurance.
Values
As AEA continues its journey to be recognised as the thought leader in energy, climate change and knowledge management, it is critical that the Group’s people embrace a set of values which underpins its performance and provides a framework for a code of conduct of which it is proud.
AEA’s strength lies in the unique expertise of its people and their capabilities. The values inform all aspects of its business activities from recruitment, to how it realises the vision, takes and implements decisions through to the assessment of individual performance.
The performance values can be expressed as follows:
- We demonstrate integrity
- We are passionate about our customers and build strong, enduring relationships
- We deliver results and achieve profitable growth
- We create and maximise shareholder value
- We lead by example
- We work and win as a team
- We recognise and develop our people
- We make a difference
Safety, health and environmental management
The Group’s goal is to be the best at safety, health and environmental management. The policy, set by the Board, is to comply, as a minimum, with legislation; ensure that the way AEA’s employees work reduces the risk of harm to a minimum; and to constantly seek ways to improve against the stated goal of excellence. Safety and environmental control measures are derived from risk management techniques and form part of the Group’s risk-based internal control system. This includes management arrangements implemented by suitably qualified and experienced staff, appropriately monitored and reviewed as part of the annual risk review process overseen by the Board. The Group provides training to employees who are required to have a detailed understanding of requirements affecting their work.
Health and safety
The Group measures all recorded accidents and absences from work of one day or more due to a work related accident or occupational health condition. Every accident is investigated with a view to learning from them. The Board and senior managers regularly review safety performance statistics and monitor a range of KPI’s including near miss reporting, timeliness of reporting, speed of occurrence investigation and compliance with the scheduled programme of safety monitoring. In terms of those parts of AEA that were in the Group all the year, key statistics are as follows:
| Reportable incidents 1 |
1 |
| Non–reportable lost time accidents |
1 |
| Near miss reports per event |
2.62 |
| Unusual occurrences reported within 3 working days |
92% |
| Occurrences investigated within target time |
100% |
| Compliance with scheduled programme of safety
monitoring |
93% |
| Planned defensive driving training completed
on time |
100% |
1 Reportable to the HSE under relevant legislation.
This performance represents a marked further improvement on the previous year. This is as a direct result of the focused management driven initiatives and specialist resources allocated to our continuing Safety Excellence Programme. In 2007/08 this introduced responsibility standards and handbooks, improved risk assessment, competence assessments and benchmarking our performance against other companies.
AEA again won a RoSPA Gold Medal for safety, in recognition of six consecutive years of good occupational safety performance.
Environmental management
The Group’s management systems aim to ensure that external requirements are met; that the environmental impact of AEA’s activities are minimised; continuous improvement involving target setting and monitoring is driven forward; environmental benefits of AEA’s products and services are maximised; and that the Group provides adequate resources, training and information. The Group also seeks to influence the environmental performance of its suppliers. In doing this AEA is certified to ISO14001.
AEA is the lead sponsor of the ‘Business Commitment to the Environment’ Awards Scheme and provides the secretariat. This year the Awards were presented by the Rt Hon David Miliband, then Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
Internal audit of our performance shows that last year our environmental impact has again reduced. The total CO2 emitted as a result of current business activities fell by over 5% compared with the previous year. CO2 from energy consumption reduced both in terms of absolute terms and per person (2%). Emissions from road travel remained about level, but from air travel reduced by well
over 10%. Office waste reduced by over 10% at the major sites where we have relevant data and recycling increased. Average paper consumption reduced by over 5%.
Community involvement
AEA’s policy is to focus community involvement in energy and environmental improvements. The Group donated £8,957 (2007: £25,483) plus payments in kind for charitable purposes. No political contributions were made.
People
AEA’s employment principle is to ensure that people are rewarded for their individual contribution to the success of the organisation.
AEA has introduced a significant transformation in the management of its human capital – a Capability Framework – establishing a common language and structure through which AEA can reflect the skills, attributes and qualities it requires as a business both now and into the future.
AEA is committed to the principle of equality of opportunity and preventing discrimination. Its policy supports AEA’s goal of being an Employer of Choice that attracts a diverse range of candidates and values the diversity of its workforce.
This has been a very important year for AEA. The Group has made a lot of good progress at its sites in Harwell, London, Glasgow, Manchester, Cardiff and Bucharest. AEA has received awards from its customers and was recognised at the Annual EDIE awards as the ‘Best Consultancy for Climate Change and Renewables’.
The Board would like to take this opportunity to thank all its people for their hard work during a year of good progress and rapid change.
Back to top