Our commitment to sustainability
Sustainability is at the heart of everything we do at FreeAgent. Here are just some of the ways in which we put that commitment into action.
People
Removing social exclusion and discrimination and making a positive impact on the community are at the top of our agenda.
We partner with organisations such as pRESPECT, Black Professionals Scotland and Women in Tech to help ensure that we operate in a way that supports diversity and inclusion as an employer in the wider community.
Within FreeAgent, we invite feedback from our team members on issues of diversity and inclusion on a regular basis. We analyse the data closely and share the results and proposed actions with the whole team.
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is one of our top priorities
Throughout the year, our 'FreeAngels' committee organises fundraising activities in support of a named annual charity partner chosen by the FreeAgent team. In addition, each team member is given a fully paid 'Volunteering Day', which they can spend supporting a cause that aligns with the company's values.
Planet
We do everything we can to reduce our impact on the environment at FreeAgent, from reducing waste and the use of plastic within the office to providing bicycles for our team members to use at lunchtime.
Here in Scotland, we support the Trees for Life scheme by planting a tree on behalf of every FreeAgent team member.
Meanwhile, we’ve planted 10,000 trees in our ‘FreeAgent Forest’ in Tanzania through ForestNation.
We aim to keep our carbon footprint at the events we attend as low as possible. Instead of distributing plastic merchandise at the Accountex show for accountants and bookkeepers in 2022, we handed out 6,000 packets of Norway Spruce seeds. We also provided visitors to our exhibition stand with the chance to have a tree planted in the FreeAgent Forest on their behalf.
Meanwhile at FreeAgent HQ, our 'GreenAngels' group helps us to minimise our environmental impact as a team by educating and inspiring everyone to form sustainable habits.
Recent GreenAngels initiatives have included displaying instructions for recycling around the office, sharing tips and ideas for reducing food waste at home, and organising litter picks in our local area.
Purpose
When it comes to running our business, the decisions we make support our commitment to sustainability.
We choose to work with suppliers who share this commitment and can provide eco-friendly solutions to meet our requirements. The company that provides our office cleaning services has a robust sustainability policy in place, while our corporate travel management partner runs a scheme that allows us to offset FreeAgent's business travel carbon footprint.
We’ve applied to become a certified B Corporation because we believe in B Lab’s mission to "use business as a force for good". Certified B Corporations, or B Corps, are companies verified by the B Lab organisation to meet high standards of social and environmental performance, transparency and accountability.
Our sustainability policy
As a company, we are committed to becoming more environmentally and socially sustainable by:
- gaining a better understanding of the impact that we make on our environment and community
- taking action to support this aim and address any shortcomings
- increasing awareness of sustainability within the company to build an eco-focused company culture
- empowering our customers to take a more sustainable approach to running their businesses