You are here: Ethical Business

An Ethical Business Approach

We believe fundamentally that the future growth of our business should be built on a clear, ethically sustainable business approach

Introduction

Business Services UK provide a range of finance and associated services for small and medium sized businesses, business entrepreneurs and new business start-ups.

We are committed and driven to providing the very highest levels of advice, communication and customer service to allow us to develop long term relationships with our customers.

Our goal is not profit at any cost, because we know that tomorrow’s success depends on the trust we build today. We believe fundamentally that the future growth of our business should be built on a clear, ethically sustainable business approach.

Our commitment to responsible business practices permeates our day to day activities and means:

being open, straightforward and honest in our business transactions      and activities.
being transparent, fair and considerate in our dealings with
     our employees, fellow directors, suppliers, customers and other
     people and organisations we have contact with.
having a positive impact on the environment and making a meaningful      contribution to our social responsibilities.
having the honesty to acknowledge when we fall short of these goals,      and having the integrity to put things right.

Employees

Our employees are our most important asset. It is our employees who deliver the high quality of work and customer service that is fundamental to the success of our business.

We have an equal opportunities employment policy and aim to employ people who reflect the diversity of society. We do not discriminate on the basis of age, sex, disability, sexual orientation, race, colour, religion, marital status or ethnic origin.

We treat out people with respect and promote a co-operative, productive and inclusive work environment.

We do not tolerate harassment or bullying under any circumstances.

We have an effective informal and formal employee grievance procedure.

Customers

Our customer service ethos is very simply to exceed our customers’ expectations. We endeavour to consistently deliver high quality levels of advice, communication and customer service.

We strive to be open, honest, and respectful in all our interaction with our customers and in sharing our ideas and thoughts, and in receiving feedback. We are committed to listening to our customers and acting appropriately.

Our policy in relation to giving or accepting gifts or entertainment is to encourage the use of good judgment, discretion, and moderation. Any gifts and entertainment given must be in compliance with current legislation and must not violate the receiver's policies on the matter.

We will always act in a manner that takes account of our customers’ interests and shall communicate our core customer policies to all our employees.

Suppliers and service partners

Our suppliers and service partners have the capability of adding value to the service we provide to our customers. For this reason we take a proactive approach in seeking the very best suppliers and business partners for each strategic area of our service supply provision.

Our relationship with our suppliers and service partners is an integral part of our business operations and we expect them to share our core values and pursuit of outstanding customer service. It is also important that they have an ethical approach to doing business.

Our policy in relation to giving or accepting gifts or entertainment is to encourage the use of good judgment, discretion, and moderation and ensure that current legislation is always complied with. We do not solicit gifts, entertainment, or favours of any value from persons or firms with which we actually or potentially conduct business. We do not act in a manner that would place any supplier or service partner in a position where they feel obligated to make a gift, provide entertainment, or provide personal favours in order to do business or continue to do business with our organisation.

Our trading relationship with our suppliers and service partners is conducted in a fair and transparent manner. We treat them with respect and courtesy and agree on fair and reasonable prices and payment terms. We respect their rights to commercial confidentiality and foster a relationship of partnership and equality.

Environmental impact

We are committed to protecting the environment and supporting sustainable development. We seek and promote the use of renewable resources and sustainable raw ingredients.

Sustainability is all about meeting our needs today without robbing future generations of the ability to meet theirs. This comes down to our responsibility in taking care to protect the earth's natural resources.

In the past 15 years for example, more than 200 million hectares of forests have been lost - an area four times the size of Spain. Up to 70% of world fish stocks are overfished or fished to their limit.

We are active in our questioning of suppliers and service partners on source and method of supply of materials, equipment and services. We actively seek and continually increase our use of environmentally friendly products.


Waste:

We have methods of operation in place to actively minimise waste and encourage our employees to continually assess our working practices to reduce waste in all aspects of what we do. All waste shall be handled and disposed of through safe and responsible methods.

Reuse and recycle to conserve natural resources:

Where feasible, we conserve natural resources through the use of recycled materials and supplies, the efficient use of energy, and the participation in recycling programs for our materials and equipment after they have served their useful life. We take care in our selection of materials used for example using sustainably sourced packaging materials like cardboard or plastic that have a recycled content, or Forestry Stewardship Council (FSC) certified board from sustainable forests.

Responsible use of chemicals:

We take great care in the use of chemicals in our working environment and have clear policies on issues such as minimising the use of volatile organic compounds, actively seeking and using more biodegradable compounds and rejecting products with PVC packaging.

Social responsibilities

We have set out above our policies and values in relation to our corporate social responsibilities.

In addition to these we recognise our responsibility to our local community and society at large and are committed to the following:

Building a successful and profitable organisation that can provide employment and contribute to reducing the inequalities and deprivation in communities across the UK.

Being ever alert to ensure the elimination of forced and child labour.

Supporting community trade programmes such as Fairtrade.

Always being prepared to defend basic human rights.

Being supportive and showing compassion and understanding for other people to encourage inclusion, self worth and self esteem.

Promote diversity and inclusion so as to enrich performance and improve the lives of employees, communities and society.

To summarise: we are committed to having a positive impact on the environment, making a meaningful contribution to our social responsibilities and working within a practical framework that meets the needs of the present without compromising the future.