Yorkshire’s largest social housing provider, WDH, has set out its performance in improving environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices against the Sustainability Report Standard for Social Housing for the first time.
The new report is based on a voluntary standard developed to provide a consistent and credible way for housing providers to report on their ESG performance, as well as identifying actions to achieve future targets set against three key themes:
- Environmental: Climate change, Ecology, Resource management
- Social: Affordability and security, Building safety and quality, Resident voice, Resident support, Placemaking
- Governance: Structure and governance, Board and Trustees, Staff wellbeing, Supply Chain
Andy Wallhead, Chief Executive of WDH, said: “Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG) plays a critical role in the achievement of our vision to create confident communities. Being well governed, delivering added social value outcomes and taking our environmental responsibilities seriously, we are focussing on the wellbeing needs of our customers and communities and playing our part in mitigating climate change.
“This is the first time we have put the ESG indicators out there, allowing us to set benchmarks to identify where we are on track, and where we need to do better.”
Going forward, WDH is taking a range of actions, including:
- improving the energy efficiency of its homes by improving insulation, to reduce carbon emissions, energy consumption and costs for its residents and meet targets to improve all existing homes to a minimum of Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating Band C by 2030 where feasible;
- trialling low and zero carbon heating systems in some of its homes;
- reviewing specifications for its new build homes to reduce carbon emissions and comply with the 2025 Future Homes Standard;
- implementing measures to improve the management of its green spaces and increase biodiversity;
- working with partners to deliver regeneration schemes across its neighbourhoods; and
- taking action to reduce its Gender Pay Gap and provide ongoing support to employee health and wellbeing
