Our approach to responsible business

Towards a sustainable future

We are committed to creating positive impact and reducing negative impact across all our activities and decisions covering our own operations and across the Square Mile, because it is the right thing to do and will help ensure a sustainable future where individuals and communities can flourish and the planet is healthier. Our approach is detailed in our Responsible Business Strategy.

The Responsible Business Strategy Annual Report outlines our progress delivering our Responsible Business Strategy in the first year of the Strategy (2018-19).

We are working to create a future where individuals and communities flourish, focusing on

• Equality and Inclusion
• Social Mobility
• Health and Wellbeing

And a future where the planet is healthier, focusing on:

• Air Quality
• Climate Action
• Biodiversity

We are also the sole trustee to Bridge House Estates, which aims to reduce inequality in London through grant-making, social investment and encouraging philanthropy. It does this through its grant-making arm, City Bridge Foundation. 

Our policies and commitments

Our commitments to being a responsible organisation include:

• Being an Employer with Heart, a London Living Wage Employer and Disability Confident Employer
• Being signatory to the Race at Work Charter.
• Our annual Women in Finance Charter submission identifies the progress for the City of London Corporation in addressing the gender balance.
• Being Single Use Plastic free across all our operational sites by 31 March 2021
• Climate Expectations for Investment Managers: our climate expectations are a key part of delivering our commitment to reach net zero by 2040 for our financial investments, in alignment with the Paris Agreement.
• Being a responsible investor - Our Responsible Investments Policy sets out our approach and details the actions that we, and our external providers, take to protect the organisation and its assets from environmental, social and corporate governance issues and reputational risks.
• Complying with the UK Stewardship Code – The Statement of commitment outlines our approach to responsible investment and stewardship which follows the seven principles of the UK Stewardship Code.
• Following a Green and Sustainable Financing Framework – The City of London Financing Framework - provides a financing framework for our City’s Cash fund that targets five environmental objectives and the related eligible project categories highlighted by the ICMA's Green Bond and establishes a framework for the selection of project categories that may be eligible for financing. The City of London Corporation Sustainable Finance Framework Assessment provides an independent review of this framework.
• Procuring responsibly: responsible procurement is the 'golden thread' running through the City of London Corporation's overarching City Procurement Strategy Responsible Procurement Policy. We have also established a Purchased Goods and Services Programme to work with our suppliers to deliver low carbon and sustainable products and services and reduce their carbon footprint.
• The City Corporation's Modern Slavery Statement brings together the roles, remits, commitments and all work undertaken to tackle modern slavery and human trafficking by the City of London Police, Department for Children and Community Services, Community Safety, Port Health & Public Protection, HR, City Procurement, the Barbican, City Bridge Trust and Heart of the City.