Strategic Report Being Responsible continued
Understanding our stakeholders
We believe that taking into account the views of our key stakeholders is critical to the long-term success of the business. We engage with all of our stakeholders to understand what is important to them. The following table sets out our key stakeholders and howwe effectively engage with them. Our section 172 statement for the year ended 31 March 2021 is on pages 62 to 63 and sets out how some of the key decisions made by the Board during the year were guided by stakeholder engagement.
Stakeholder
What is important to our stakeholders
Howwe engage
What we have done this year
Our people
– Fair and equal treatment – Career progression – Fair pay and conditions – Good work/life balance – Positive work culture and values
We have a small team and engage regularly with them. We have an appraisal process where each member of the teamwill discuss their performance and objectives with their line manager twice a year. We carry out an annual employee survey, and the results of this are discussed at a meeting held with our designated Non-Executive Director for employee engagement, Maria Bentley. We are committed to improving local communities where we own buildings, whether providing space to local businesses, improvement of local areas or minimising the environmental impact of buildings themselves. We engage through our charity and community initiatives and through our occupier engagement programme. One of our key priorities is to work with our occupiers, so that we can understand their needs and aim to meet their current and future requirements. Our asset managers maintain regular contact with occupiers and discuss with them any issues regarding the buildings and any future plans we have. Our Head of Occupier Services has developed an occupier engagement programme, and will attend occupier meetings and other events. We send out an occupier newsletter regularly with relevant and helpful information.
We have maintained contact with the team by holding regular virtual meetings and have held a socially distanced team offsite when restrictions allowed. The results of the employee survey showed the team remained positive and morale was good.
Local communities and charities
– Local employment opportunities – Positive contribution to local economy – Safe and clean environment
This year, to mark our fifteenth anniversary, we created a funding award of £15,000 to support local community organisations or charities where we own buildings. We received many applications and selected five worthwhile projects to receive an award.
Our occupiers
– Space suited to their needs – Fair lease terms – Well-managed, efficiently run and sustainable buildings – Good relationships
Our engagement with occupiers has been very important this year. We have proactively liaised with many occupiers over the course of the year, trying to find mutually beneficial solutions to the issues caused by the pandemic.
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