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Corporate Responsibility

Heron Bros recognises that sustainability creates value for our business and is critical to our future. We have therefore placed sustainability at the core of our business strategy to ensure we continue to challenge our business and industry to drive the sustainable growth required.

We are already using sustainability to drive efficiency through our processes, engage with our stakeholders, to develop our people, our expertise and our knowledge. We have set ourselves some challenging goals over the coming years and will continue to monitor, measure and report on our performance.

We benchmark our sustainability performance across the following categories:

Responsible Business
We are committed to conducting our business in a responsible manner and treating all stakeholders with integrity and respect. We have produced a number of corporate documents to promote the ethos of responsible business including our new Code of Conduct and Subcontractor Handbook.

We recognise the value of building a diverse workforce. We have worked hard to build a dedicated team that is proud to work for our company and committed to ensuring we lead through excellence and innovation.

We are proud of our quality supply chain and the value they add to our business. We have developed our new supply chain management process to ensure we work with like-minded companies that will join us on our goal of becoming a more sustainable business.

We have become increasingly aware of the economic impact we have within the communities we operate. Increasing the use of local supply chain partners is a key objective and target for us and remains high on our corporate agenda. We continue to work with all stakeholders including our own procurement teams to increase the use of local suppliers.

We recognise the socio-economic impact our procurement choices can have both at a local level and globally. We have therefore implemented our sustainable procurement policy to increase the volume of responsible sourcing of sustainable products and materials including the use of FSC/PEFC timber, recycled materials and / or materials made from a recycled content and the use of materials listed in the Green Book.

Key Achievements in 2016:
- Achieving Platinum Investors in People (Only company in Northern Ireland & only contractor in UK to achieve platinum)
- Achieving BITC CORE Responsible Business Standard – Gold level
- Achieving FORS – Bronze level
- Increase in female representation to 16% (above industry average of 13%)
- Commitment to STEM Charter
- Average Considerate Constructors Scheme score of 42/50 (well above UK average score of 35.5)
- Winning UK Most Considerate Site at the 2016 Considerate Constructors Scheme Awards -£10M-£50M
- Winning two Considerate Constructors Scheme gold awards
- Adding 120 new subcontractors to our approved list
Corporate Responsibility Report 2016

Corporate Responsibility Report 2015

Corporate Responsibility Report 2014
Resource Efficiency
We recognize the impact our operations can have on our natural environment and resources. We have taken steps integrate resource efficiency across all stages of our projects including design, procurement and construction. With are focus now on preventing waste we continue to invest in new and improved ways of working, training and development of our people and supply chain and how we can continue to protect our natural environment.

Key Achievements in 2016:

Waste Management

90% of all waste diverted from landfill

Carbon Management

% Breakdown

Electricity 83%

Diesel (plant) 16%

Vehicles 1%

Total 100%

Key Achievements in 2016:
- 90% waste diverted from landfill
- ESOS energy profiling completed
- Gold status ARENA Network Environmental Benchmarking Survey
- On going development of our BITC Business & Biodiversity Charter
- Winning a gold Scottish Green Apple Award for the Stevenson Hive Building at The University of Glasgow
- Winning Sustainable Project of the Year for The Innovation Factory – Sustainable Ireland Awards
- 100% client targeted BREEAM rating achieved
Corporate Responsibility Report 2016

Corporate Responsibility Report 2015

Corporate Responsibility Report 2014
People & Lifestyle
As a member of Investors in People, we recognize the importance of investing in our people to develop their knowledge and expertise that will add significant value to their own personal development and our overall business performance.

During 2016 we provided over 10,000 hours of training to our employees and supply chain. This included both internal and external training at all levels across the business.

We aim to maximize the positive impact we can have in the communities in which we work and believe one way of achieving this is by providing apprenticeship and placement opportunities. These opportunities include managerial and administrative roles and also various trades.

We continue to invest in the health, safety and well-being of our people and in accordance with our “Start Smart” campaign continue to roll out initiatives during the year in conjunction with various partners including Business in the Community and Build Health NI.

Key Achievements in 2016:
- Achieved Platinum Investors in People
- 93 training courses
- 10,000 training hours delivered
- 22 apprenticeship opportunities provided
- 11 industrial placement opportunities
- 3400 NEETS, LTU New Entrant & Employment Professionals
- 1 graduate internship
- 97% staff retention
- 50 health & wellbeing initiatives delivered
Corporate Responsibility Report 2016

Corporate Responsibility Report 2015

Corporate Responsibility Report 2014
Community & Partnering
We aim to maximize the positive impact that we can have in the communities in which we operate. This includes the use of local supply chain partners, providing apprenticeship, placement and employment opportunities for local people and by supporting local initiatives so we can have a positive legacy long after we move off site.

We engage early with the local community during the planning stages of all projects. Our Corporate Responsibility Coordinator meets with local stakeholders to establish a community engagement strategy to ensure we maintain communication throughout all stages of the project. We register our projects with the Considerate Constructors Scheme as we are committed to improving the image of the industry.

We encourage and support our employees to volunteer their time within their own local communities and we continue to partner with organizations to assist us in maximizing the positive impact we can have at a local level.

Key Achievements in 2016:
- 96 community engagement initiatives
- 66 socio economic and community partners
- Over 3000 hours of volunteering
- Over £35k employee led donations to charities
- Won UK Most Considerate Site at the Considerate Constructors Scheme Awards
- Achieved 2 gold awards at Considerate Constructors Scheme awards
- 5 best practice case studies published on the Considerate Constructors Scheme Best Practice Hub
Corporate Responsibility Report 2016

Corporate Responsibility Report 2015

Corporate Responsibility Report 2014