SUSTAINABILITY Policy

Sustainability Policy

Oriel Square recognises that businesses can have a negative impact on the environment. One of our ten company values is “We are mindful of our impact on the environment and endeavour to minimise the impact of our operations on our surroundings.” We are committed to, and enjoy, finding ways in which we can reduce the impact of our work both in the office and away from it. 

We are in agreement with the aims of the Publishing Declares statement on sustainability.

Oriel Square is committed to achieving Net Zero emissions as fast as possible and certainly by 2050.

What we’ve done historically 

Our 4-day working week has been in place since 2017. This means the staff carbon costs associated with their energy at home and commuting are reduced. We have no company vehicles and no plans to have any. Our city centre office is close to public transport links with limited parking so both colleagues and visiting clients and suppliers are encouraged to travel in more carbon-efficient ways. Our landlord uses a renewable energy supplier. Our pension provider offers an ethical investment fund and we bank with an ethical bank. 

Actions 2021–22 

Policy

Published a Carbon Reduction Plan, giving a colleague responsibility for carbon reduction and supported them being certified Carbon Literate. 

Energy use and resources 

● Reviewed our office energy use to minimise consumption. For example, using the timer facility on the boiler and storage heaters to avoid heating the office when no one is working; closing internal doors to avoid heat loss; turning off machines on stand-by where practical. 

● Introduced additional insulation to the building including the basement windows and the back door. 

● Prefer low-carbon communications channels: reducing unnecessary emails with a preference for communicating via Slack (more carbon-efficient) or in person.

● Ensured our business processes are paperless. 

● If we do print materials, we aim to print on recycled and recyclable paper. We no longer send company Christmas cards. 

● Reuse waste paper where possible. 

● Purchase products made with recycled paper. For example, toilet paper.

● Use a net-zero laundry service. 

● Encourage recycling, including food waste. 

● Buy office milk in returnable glass bottles from the dairy and have them delivered by e-bike.

● Provided a lunch area with a microwave, fridge, kettle and toaster to encourage home-made lunches, and a collection of containers so that lunches can be fetched from market stalls without using disposable containers.

Travel

● Established a cycle-to-work scheme, which has been used by several staff, and promote active transport. 

● Encouraged consideration of whether meetings can be held virtually rather than face to face. 

● Set a hybrid working pattern where most colleagues work for 2 days in the office and 2 days from home, reducing commuting time. 

● Encouraged colleagues to add holiday to the start or end of business trips to maximise use obtained from the carbon cost of their travel.

Purchasing

● Prefer second-hand/vintage furniture over new when equipping the office, and recycle equipment that is no longer of use to the company. We use local services to give away or sell cheaply items such as furniture that we no longer use. 

● Purchase products with a lower environmental impact, for example environmentally conscious soaps and detergents, preferring to buy refills than smaller bottles.

● Prefer to use local/small suppliers rather than less ethical corporates. 

● Introduced a book swap system and share second-hand books for Christmas.