Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Policy

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Policy

1. The purpose of this policy

As a supplier to the government Bluestar understand the standards and behaviours expected from us. We are fully committed to conducting our business as ethically as possible, respecting the law, and going beyond what is deemed compulsory so that in all we do we positively affect society as a whole.

This policy is part of our Quality Assurance System. It outlines how we deliver on the promise of being good corporate citizens.

Our policy focuses on achieving economic, social and environmental benefits for all stakeholders involved. It is clustered around seven core areas where we believe we can achieve the greatest positive impacts and create value for all our stakeholders:

• Equality and accessibility
• Looking after our staff
• Human rights
• Environmental Sustainability
• Supply chain
• Community engagement and social value
• Value

We adhere to the UK Corporate Governance Code underpinned by robust processes.

 

We actively seek to be good corporate citizens by upholding the values of this policy, taking into consideration social value legislation in delivering goods and services and supporting key government corporate social responsibility policy areas such as diversity and inclusion, sustainability, prompt payment, small and medium sized enterprise engagement, the Armed Forces Covenant, apprenticeships, and skills development and addressing the gender pay gap.

 

2. Who we are and what we do

A Leading Healthcare Agency in Crawley, West Sussex. Bluestar is a leading healthcare agency based in Crawley, West Sussex. We recruit UK-wide for our core nursing and care roles across different healthcare sectors. With the added support of our experienced and qualified recruitment specialists, we ensure that we provide the best possible support to our staff and clients alike.

Our team of staff covers all grades of nurses (RGNs and RMNs), HCAs, and support workers, providing full comprehensive cover for all your staffing needs. We are committed to providing our clients with the highest quality of care, and we are confident that we can find the perfect candidates for your needs.

This policy applies to our company and all its branches. It applies to all employees and workers engaged by Bluestar and all third parties engaged by and representing or acting on behalf of  Bluestar  in whatever capacity.

3. Equality and accessibility

Promoting equal opportunities is fundamental to the ambitions and ethos of Bluestar. We welcome applications from those with as diverse a range of backgrounds as possible. All applicants are treated solely based on their abilities and all recruitment, selection and training processes are free from discrimination on the grounds of the protected characteristics. When engaging with prospect applicants or their trade associations we will always act ethically and abide by the relevant legislation, such as the Bribery Act 2010.

All staff receive training in the subject of equality and diversity to ensure they live by our values. Our fully trained and vetted staff will treat all persons encountered in the course of their work with respect.

Some public contracts deliver services to service users with particular needs such as physical or mental disabilities, medical conditions or other factors that place them in a vulnerable position. We will ensure that these service users are treated at all times with courtesy and that their dignity, safety, security and wellbeing is always treated as a priority concern.

Our employees, those of our key stakeholders, and service users have the right to respectful treatment. We will not tolerate discrimination, harassment or victimisation in the workplace or in connection with any services we provide. We expect our suppliers to provide the same commitment, including to their own employees. The Equality Act 2010 protects against discrimination, harassment and victimisation.

 

4. Looking after our staff

We are only as good as the people we employ. We aim to create a great place to work where everyone is treated with respect and fairness, feels valued and can flourish. The opportunities we offer our staff give them realistic scope to develop and progress.

The flexible nature of markets we serve means we can offer jobs and income security to those who might otherwise struggle to find work.

All our staff, including temporary workers receive an itemised and accurate payslip every time they are paid so that they can understand how their take-home pay is calculated.

We also provide every temporary worker with a handbook which includes a transparent breakdown and ‘one page’ information sheet of the job role, day one rights, 12 week rights, benefits, pay structures/models offered and a calculation of the take home pay that they can expect to be received prior to completion of registration and deployment within a job role.

We regularly review the ‘one page’ information sheet and staff handbook to update it, as necessary, on an annual basis or as changes to pay and/or benefits occur.

We will only provide temporary workers via payment methods that deduct PAYE tax and Class 1 ENIC in line with IR35/ITEPA legislation and HMRC requirements.

We will protect our employees with respect to health and safety and provide them with a safe place to work as far as it is reasonably practicable as outlined in our Health and Safety Policy.

• We are committed to paying all of our staff the real Living Wage. The real Living Wage is calculated by the Living Wage Foundation and is based on the cost of living in the UK. We believe that everyone deserves to be paid a fair wage that allows them to meet their basic needs.
• Additional benefits offered: We offer a range of additional benefits to our employees, including:
  • Healthcare and dental plans
  • Pension scheme
  • Training and development opportunities
  • Employee assistance programmes
  • Paid parental leave
  • Flexible working arrangements
• Initiatives to improve work environment: We are committed to creating a positive and supportive work environment for all of our employees. We have implemented a number of initiatives to improve the work environment, including:
  • Regular employee surveys
  • Employee engagement activities
  • Workplace diversity and inclusion initiatives
  • Mental health awareness programs
  • Ergonomic office furniture
  • On-site fitness facilities

We believe that these initiatives are important for creating a happy, healthy, and productive workforce.

5. Human rights

Our company is dedicated to protecting human rights and abiding by employment laws such as the Modern Slavery Act 2015.

We will ensure that our activities do not directly or indirectly violate human rights in countries where we operate.

During recruitment we look out for signs of labour exploitation and human trafficking and we take action if we have any doubt. The checks we carry out as part of our recruitment process would uncover practices typically associated with modern slavery such as the retaining of passports.

Since victims of slavery are likely to come into contact with healthcare providers, our staff receive training in the subject of human rights and can identify the signs of trafficking and refer the case to organisations which can provide support.

Our staff also receive training in safeguarding to help them better respond to the risks related to health, wellbeing and human rights of children, young persons and adults at risk.

The greatest risk of slavery, child labour, human trafficking and inhumane treatment lies in the employment of suppliers and contractors by Bluestar, where their work practices may be non-compliant. Therefore, we will only partner with reputable suppliers and will not enter into a business relationship with unethical businesses or oppressive countries.

Our statement sets out the steps that we take to prevent modern slavery in our business and supply chains. These steps include:

• Conducting due diligence on all new suppliers and contractors to assess their risk of involvement in modern slavery.
• Monitoring our existing suppliers on an ongoing basis to ensure that they are complying with our policy.
• Providing training to our employees on modern slavery.
• Having a whistleblowing hotline that allows employees to report any suspected instances of modern slavery.
• Working with other businesses and organizations to combat modern slavery.

We are committed to ensuring that our business is free from modern slavery, and we will continue to take all necessary steps to prevent it.

 

6. Environmental sustainability

Our company recognises the need to protect the natural environment.

We appreciate our impact on the environment may be relatively small but we strive to make a difference as we:

• reduce the amount of waste we produce, promote re-use and recycling
• dispose of any waste through licenced contractors
• save energy and water in office(s) and on client’s premises
• encourage staff to walk, cycle and use public transport to get around

We have a system in place to identify, assess, and control our environmental impacts. We are regularly audited to ensure that we are meeting the requirements of the standard.

• Measuring and publishing our organization’s carbon footprint: This allows us to track our progress in reducing our emissions and identify areas where we can make further improvements. We publish our carbon footprint on our website so that everyone can see how we are doing.
• Reducing business travel: We encourage video conferencing and other virtual communication methods whenever possible to reduce the need for travel. We also have a policy of offsetting the carbon emissions from all business travel that is unavoidable.
• Taking environmental considerations into account during the procurement or rental of:
  • Company’s office: We look for offices that are energy-efficient and have good environmental credentials. We also consider the environmental impact of the construction materials used in the building.
  • Cleaning products: We use cleaning products that are environmentally friendly and do not contain harmful chemicals.
  • Office equipment: We purchase office equipment that is energy-efficient and has a long lifespan. We also recycle old equipment whenever possible.

We believe that these initiatives are making a positive impact on the environment and helping us to reduce our impact on climate change. We are committed to continuing to improve our environmental performance and working towards a sustainable future.

7. Supply chain

We aim to communicate with our suppliers in a fair and transparent way to establish mutually beneficial long-term relationships. We will remain in full compliance with the updated principles published in February 2017 on The Transparency of Suppliers and Government to the Public.  Where contractually required, we will provide full and prompt disclosure of accurate cost, revenue and margin information (Open Book Accounting and Open Book Contract Management) in line with published guidance and the terms of each contract. Suppliers should expect us to publish agreed key performance indicators and to conduct

Pursuant to this, Bluestar will not engage in bribery or corruption in any form and has a zero-tolerance approach to breach whether it involves private individuals or public officials.

We work in partnership with our key suppliers and insist that they behave ethically and adhere to the same high standards of professional behaviour as we do.

Organisations that provide critical goods or services to Bluestar are subject to appropriate due diligence. They are required to confirm they and their own supply chains are free from human trafficking and slavery.

We share this policy with our suppliers and expect them to communicate it to their employees and suppliers. We also encourage suppliers to develop their own CSR policies.

We have systems in place to ensure that organizations in our supply chain are paid on time. We will pay undisputed and valid invoices within 45 or less days. We are committed to conducting our business in an ethical and transparent manner, and we have a zero-tolerance policy for bribery and corruption.

• Our anti-bribery and corruption policy applies to all our employees, agents, and representatives, and it prohibits any form of bribery or corruption, including:
  • Offering or giving anything of value to a public official or any other person to obtain or retain business or a business advantage.
  • Soliciting or accepting anything of value from a public official or any other person to improperly influence the performance of their duties.
• We have a robust compliance program in place to prevent and detect bribery and corruption, and we regularly train our employees on our policy.
• We also conduct due diligence on all new suppliers and contractors to ensure that they have a good anti-bribery and corruption record.
• We monitor our existing suppliers on an ongoing basis to ensure that they are complying with our policy.
• We support local suppliers by giving them preference in our procurement process and by providing them with training and assistance to help them meet our ethical standards.

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8. Community engagement & social value

We work in collaboration with the Social Value Portal, on-line solution that allows us to measure and manage the contribution that our organisation and supply chain makes to society, according to the principles laid out within the Public Services (Social Value) Act 2012. This allows us to report both non-financial and financial data for the work we do to contribute to our communities.

• We make donations to local charities and organizations that support a variety of causes, including education, healthcare, and the environment.

We prefer to hire local whenever possible. This helps to support the local economy and create jobs.

We participate in a variety of local projects, such as community cleanups and fundraising events. We also support local businesses and organizations by buying from them and attending their events.

We are committed to being a good neighbor and making a positive impact on our local community. We believe that by working together, we can make our community a better place for everyone.

Here are some specific examples of our community engagement activities:

• We participate in the annual community cleanup day, and our employees take part to help clean up the local park.
• We donate money to the local school district to support educational programs.

We are always looking for new ways to engage with our community, and we are committed to making a difference.

9. Value

We aspire to obtain value for every taxpayer pound and to be able to demonstrate that long-term value to the taxpayer. This means that our contracts are priced to offer sustainable value throughout their life, including when changes are needed. We work in good faith to resolve any disputes promptly and fairly during the life of a contract through good relationship management and, where appropriate, contractual dispute resolution mechanisms.

We use recognised industry practices in the delivery of recruitment services to, or on behalf of, all our contracting authorities.  We aim to continuously improve our services and bring innovation, ideas and expertise to help Contracting Authorities to address their strategic challenges and to support growth and prosperity in the UK.

10. Monitoring and review

We review the policy quarterly or sooner if significant changes are made to ensure it is up to date with regulations and industry best practices. This includes reviewing the policy against relevant laws and regulations, as well as the latest industry standards and guidelines.

We monitor the implementation of the policy through a variety of means, including:

• Employee surveys
• Management reviews
• Audits
• Incident reports

We set CSR objectives and targets for each year, and we track our progress against these targets on a regular basis. This helps us to ensure that we are making progress towards our CSR goals.

We communicate the policy to all employees and stakeholders, and we provide training on the policy as needed. This helps to ensure that everyone understands the policy and is committed to its implementation.

We are committed to continuously improving our CSR policy and practices, and we believe that regular review and monitoring are essential to achieving this goal.

This policy is reviewed at least YEARLY or sooner if significant changes are made to ensure it is up to date with regulations and industry best practices.

 

Signed by:  Hitendra Sharma

                     Managing Director

Signature:  Hitendra Sharma