Our Approach
Defining Our Priorities
In 2022 we conducted a materiality assessment to ensure that our strategic priorities and targets within them were appropriate and reflected our stakeholders' expectations. This followed guidelines by the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) and the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB), now part of the IFRS Foundation. We follow a four step process:
- Understanding the organisations context
- Identifying actual and potential impacts
- Assessing significance of impacts
- Prioritising the most significant impacts for reporting
The same process was followed in 2023 and the following material issues, which form the basis of our reporting, were identified:
- Championing low-carbon growth
- Nurturing talent
- Investing in our local communities and environments
- Operating in the context of sound governance
Championing low-carbon growth
- Driving a pathway to net-zero through effective energy management (including embodied carbon), and by enabling a transition to renewable energy for SEGRO and our customers.
- Ensuring environmental compliance, today and in anticipation of future regulatory changes, and ongoing certification against relevant standards.
- Understanding the need and opportunity for climate adaptation, and building resilience to climate change, for SEGRO and our customers.
- Identifying and executing business and diversification strategies in the renewables sector, that build on our unique positioning and strengths.
- Understanding our biodiversity impacts and supporting urban greening.
Responsible water management.
Nurturing Talent
- Attracting, developing and nurturing talent for rewarding careers.
- Ensuring the safety and health of our employees, our suppliers and those who use our facilities.
- Promoting diversity, equity and inclusion, including and beyond succession planning and compliance.
Investing in our local communities and environments
- Implementing smart technology that makes lives better, and protects the environment.
- Leading in the development and implementation of ethical building standards.
- Engaging with and investing in local communities for mutual positive impact.
Aligning with the UNSDGs
We have reviewed the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals against our Responsible SEGRO strategic priorities to understand which goals are particularly significant to our business. Elements of our business are aligned with all of the goals but we believe we are able to make the greatest contribution to six of them:
SEGRO is committed to reducing the embodied carbon in its development programme as well as reducing the carbon-intensity of our properties.
We want to play our part in tackling climate change and have ambitious net-zero goals.
SEGRO has a strong track record of supporting local communities and employment (including training) is
one of the areas that our Community Investment Plans (CIPs) focus on. We want to play our part in reducing
inequalities and ensuring more people have the right skills to access meaningful work.
We want our people to have rewarding and fulfilling careers and are committed to fair pay throughout our operations and also our supply chain, and to ensuring that our spaces provide safe working environments and promote health and wellbeing for all.
Reporting and Ratings
There are a number of different frameworks that we use to report on our wider ESG metrics, including:
- Global Reporting Initiative (GRI)
- Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures project (TCFD)
- EPRA sustainable Best Practice Reporting: Gold
- Workforce Disclosure Initiative: 80 per cent
- National Equality Standard
- Parker Review
- FTSE Women Leaders
There are also various agencies who review and assess our ESG reporting and performance, including:
- MSCI: AAA
- Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP): A-
- Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark (GRESB):
- Standing investments: three-star
- Development: four-star
- Public disclosure: A
- FTSE4GOOD: 3.2 (2.9 sub-sector average)