What are the material issues the company has identified?

In its 2015 Sustainability Report Canary Wharf Group identified a range of material issues, such as GHG emissions, tenant and consumer demand and supply, design and construction impacts. Among these, opening up economic opportunities to people living in the areas surrounding its operations within an area of London where many young people are failing to enter the labour market stands out as a key material issue for the Group.

Stakeholder engagement in accordance with the GRI Standards

The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) defines the principle of stakeholder inclusiveness when identifying material issues (or a company’s most important impacts) as follows:

“The organization should identify its stakeholders, and explain how it has responded to their reasonable expectations.”

Stakeholders must be consulted in the process of identifying a company’s most important impacts and their reasonable expectations and interests must be taken into account. This is an important cornerstone for CSR / sustainability reporting done responsibly.

Key stakeholders groups Canary Wharf Group engages with:

Stakeholder Group	Method of engagement
Communities	·         Community Forums ·         Corporate Social Responsibility Forums ·         Transport Forums ·         Security and Business Community Forums ·         Recreational, social and cultural activities
Employees and contractors	·         Staff Consultative Committee meetings ·         Employee environmental awareness training ·         Health and Safety Forums ·         Performance reviews
Investors	·         Annual reporting ·         Responses to individual queries
Local government	·         Planning Forums ·         Planning process ·         Advice and response to technical queries
National government	·         Working Groups ·         Consultation ·         Communication programs
Tenants, occupiers and retailers	·         Sustainability Forums ·         Regular meetings on a building-by-building basis ·         Retail Tenant Forums ·         Canary Wharf PR and Communications Forums
Suppliers	·         Meet the Buyer events ·         Business Mentoring and Coaching ·         Local Procurement Partnerships

How stakeholder engagement was made to identify material issues

In late 2015 and early 2016 Canary Wharf Group carried out a materiality assessment, to identify material issues. This materiality assessment included research into key issues identified by stakeholders and, also, a materiality workshop that involved important external stakeholders.

What actions were taken by Canary Wharf Group to generate employment and create opportunities for local businesses in the Canary Wharf Estate?

In its 2015 Sustainability Report Canary Wharf Group reports that it took the following actions for generating employment and creating opportunities for local businesses in the Canary Wharf Estate:

• Taking initiatives to support small and local businesses
• Canary Wharf Group helped establish the East London Business Place (ELBP) and the South London Procurement Network (SLPN), securing more than £1.2 billion worth of contracts for local communities. In 2015:
  • The Fit for Legacy (FfL) programme helped:
    • support 570 SMMEs (small, medium and micro enterprises)
    • win £17 million of local contracts
    • protect approximately 300 jobs and create 130 new jobs
  • The Business Lab:
    • helped support over 300 SMMEs through business mentoring and coaching
    • gave direct access to apprenticeships and accredited training
  • Local SMMEs secured more than £4.3 million in local contracts, through SLPN
  • The Ready to Supply the City (RTSTC) programme supported SMMEs in competing for contracts with City-based businesses and their supply chains

• Creating jobs for local people
• Through Skillsmatch and other initiatives almost 10,000 Tower Hamlets residents have been placed into jobs.
• In partnership with the East End Community Foundation (EECF) and Land Securities, Canary Wharf Group created the 20 Fenchurch Street Legacy Fund. The Fund will support, with annual grants of up to £20,000, non-profit organisations, helping people in Hackney, Newham, Tower Hamlets and the City of London return to work.
• Canary Wharf Group donated £50,000 and 46% of schools in Tower Hamlets signed up to Code Club. Through Code Club, primary school children are taught coding. This is in order to gain the digital skills needed to find a job in the fast-growing tech sector.

Which GRI indicators/Standards have been addressed?

The GRI indicators/Standards addressed in this case are:

1) G4-EC8: Significant indirect economic impacts, including the extent of impacts – the updated GRI Standard is: Disclosure 203-2 Significant indirect economic impacts

2) G4-EC9: Proportion of spending on local suppliers at significant locations of operation – the updated GRI Standard is: Disclosure 204-1 Proportion of spending on local suppliers

 

References:

1) This case study is based on published information by Canary Wharf Group Plc, located at the link below. For the sake of readability, we did not use brackets or ellipses. However, we made sure that the extra or missing words did not change the report’s meaning. If you would like to quote these written sources from the original please revert to the following link:

http://group.canarywharf.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/canary-wharf-group-annual-sustainability-report-2015.pdf (Canary Wharf Group Plc Sustainability Report 2015)

2) http://www.fbrh.co.uk/en/global-reporting-initiative-gri-g4-guidelines-download-page

3) https://g4.globalreporting.org/Pages/default.aspx

4) https://www.globalreporting.org/standards/gri-standards-download-center/

 

Note to Canary Wharf Group: With each case study we send out an email requesting a comment on this case study. If you have not received such an email please contact us.

What are the material issues the company has identified?

In its 2014 Sustainability Report Canary Wharf Group identified a range of material issues: UK’s economic prosperity, housing, tenant & consumer demand & supply, developing the Canary Wharf Estate. Among these, opening up economic opportunities to people living in the areas surrounding its operations within an area of London where many young people are failing to enter the labour market stands out as a key material issue for the Group.

 

Stakeholder engagement in accordance with the GRI Standards

The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) defines the Principle of Stakeholder Inclusiveness when identifying material issues (or a company’s most important impacts) as follows:

“The organization should identify its stakeholders, and explain how it has responded to their reasonable expectations.”

Stakeholders must be consulted in the process of identifying a company’s most important impacts and their reasonable expectations and interests must be taken into account. This is an important cornerstone for CSR / sustainability reporting done responsibly.

Key stakeholder groups the Canary Wharf Group engages with:

• Community
• Existing and potential tenants, occupiers and retailers
• Suppliers
• Employees
• Local authorities
• Investors

How stakeholder engagement was made to identify material issues

In 2014, the Canary Wharf Group engaged with its stakeholders in the following ways:

Community

• Community Forums
• Community Receptions
• Corporate Social Responsibility Forums

Existing and potential tenants, occupiers and retailers

• Sustainability Forums
• Retail Tenant Forums
• Canary Wharf PR and Communications Forums
• Security and Business Community Forums
• Regular meetings with office occupiers and tenants on a building-by-building basis

Suppliers

• Health and Safety Forums
• East London Business Place (ELBP)
• South London Procurement Network (SLPN)

Employees

• Canary Wharf Group Staff Consultative Committee meetings
• Employee environmental awareness training
• Employee focus groups

Local authorities

• Close collaboration with three local authorities (Tower Hamlets, the City of London and Lambeth)
• Transport Forums

Investors

• Reporting: the CSR report provides investors with all the CSR information needed (social, environmental and ethical information) to make informed decisions about the Group’s performance and prospects

What actions were taken by Canary Wharf Group to generate employment and create opportunities for local businesses in the Canary Wharf Estate?

In its 2014 Sustainability Report Canary Wharf Group set the following targets for generating employment and creating opportunities for local businesses in the Canary Wharf Estate, based on the company’s approach to materiality – on taking action on what matters, where it matters:

• Creating jobs for local people

• In 2014 20% of the Group’s recruits were local.
• 28.1% of the total working population at Canary Wharf reside in the Central Inner East area of London and a further 15% in Central Inner West.
• [tweetthis]More than 10,000 local people were placed, through Skillsmatch, into jobs[/tweetthis] since the Group set it up with the London Borough of Tower Hamlets’ job brokerage team in October 1997.

• Enhancing graduate employment

• October 2014: Canary Wharf Group hosted a two-week training programme for unemployed graduates and provided mentors from Level39, its start-up and financial technology (Fintech) accelerator.
• Canary Wharf Group collaborates with London Works to help local residents and above all graduates gain employment with companies in the City and at Canary Wharf.
• Through its Built Environment Club, held twice a year, the Group invites students on construction-related courses from the higher education institutions in Canary Wharf Group’s local communities to visit its developments.

• Offering internships and placements

• 2014: Canary Wharf Group took on 99 work experience participants. During July and August, the Group took on four placement students for six weeks and also hosted undergraduates from local universities.
• Three Bangladeshi interns joined the Group’s East London Business Place (ELBP) team as business engagement officers.

• Taking initiatives to support local businesses

• 2014: Canary Wharf Group’s total Group spend with companies located near its operations increased to 45%.
• Between 1997 and 2008 the Group’s Local Business Liaison Office (LBLO) helped small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs) secure more than £615 million of business with companies on the Estate and in the surrounding area.
• Canary Wharf Group helped establish the East London Business Place (elbp.co.uk) and, more recently, the South London Procurement Network (www.slpn.org.uk).
• By the end of its first year SLPN engaged with 61 buyers and 942 suppliers and helped 300 of them become ready to tender for contracts.
• Using SLPN’s advice, networking, events and workshops registered companies won contracts worth £2.4 million and secured a further £3.1 million of work through Canary Wharf Group’s joint venture with Qatari Diar.
• In 2014 ELBP and SLPN helped local businesses win £7.7 million worth of work.
• Through the Fit for Legacy (FfL) programme SMMEs generated wealth and employment as a result of free assistance with tendering opportunities, finding suppliers or buyers and networking events. The programme provided 569 SMMEs with at least 12 hours of support, helped create 74 new jobs and safeguarded 288 existing roles.

Which GRI indicators/Standards have been addressed?

The GRI indicators/Standards addressed in this case are:

1) G4-EC8: Significant indirect economic impacts, including the extent of impacts – the updated GRI Standard is: Disclosure 203-2 Significant indirect economic impacts

2) G4-EC9: Proportion of spending on local suppliers at significant locations of operation – the updated GRI Standard is: Disclosure 204-1 Proportion of spending on local suppliers

 

References:

1) This case study is based on published information by Canary Wharf Group, located at the link below. For the sake of readability, we did not use brackets or ellipses. However, we made sure that the extra or missing words did not change the report’s meaning. If you would like to quote these written sources from the original, please revert to the original on the Global Reporting Initiative’s Sustainability Disclosure Database at the link:

http://database.globalreporting.org/

2) http://www.fbrh.co.uk/en/global-reporting-initiative-gri-g4-guidelines-download-page

3) https://g4.globalreporting.org/Pages/default.aspx

4) https://www.globalreporting.org/standards/gri-standards-download-center/

Note to Canary Wharf Group: With each case study we send out an email to your listed address in request for a comment on this case study. If you have not received such an email please contact us.