Corporate Responsibility and Ethical Policy
Barrow Hepburn & Gale is a long established manufacturer and supplier of heritage products. Our core products have and continue to play a significant role in the country’s constitutional monarchical democratic system of government. What we make and supply ensures transparency and accountability within our system of government. Consequently, we take our corporate and ethical responsibilities seriously.
We respect the individual legally defined rights of our staff, third-party suppliers, manufacturers and customers. We believe that those rights extend to people and the shared environment. Our strong belief in people and the future of our planet informs all our business decisions.
Our aim is and always has been to make products that provide long service and use thereby ensuring that our products are non- disposable items. We encourage repair, renewal, refurbishment and conservation of every item we have ever supplied. Each item made utilises traditional British artisanship and uses materials sourced from within the United Kingdom. We do this to encourage and assist the continuity of individual artisanship and small, specialised companies. We believe that sourcing and outsourcing within the United Kingdom is socially responsible, maintains a low impact on the environment and employs a visible workforce subject to all available legal protections.
Occasionally, we may have to source materials from outside of the United Kingdom. When we do, we source responsibly from companies in Europe – on the basis that European companies are subject to environmental and social regulations.
Overall, we believe that it is our duty to safeguard the environment, minimise energy use, and support heritage industries and individual craftspeople for present and future generations.
Our core aims and objectives pertaining to corporate and ethical responsibilities are as follows,
With respect to staff, suppliers, makers, customers and society -
❖ Uphold and promote equal opportunities
❖ Uphold and promote an anti-discriminatory policy regardless of gender, class, race or religion
❖ Promote the interests of the socially vulnerable
❖ Treat everyone fairly and transparently with dignity and respect irrespective of their gender, class, race or religion
❖ To adhere to best working practices as regulated by Health and Safety policies and to ensure that our makers and suppliers follow Health and Safety policies within their own working environments
❖ Encourage and promote a friendly, collaborative and non-aggressive working environment
❖ Encourage and promote collaboration with our suppliers and craftspeople
❖ Use and support services in local communites
❖ Promote heritage crafts and encourage the preservation of traditional skills through knowledge sharing and communication
❖ Treat our suppliers and craftspeople fairly and build working relationships based on trust and respect
❖ To pay our suppliers and craftspeople on time
❖ Ensure that all our customers receive the very best that we can produce and receive our products safely and securely packaged
❖ Provide continuous post-purchase support and care
❖ Encourage refurbishment, conservation, repair of products supplied historically
❖ Promote and encourage a greater understanding of the country’s governance ( in respect of what we make and supply to the Royal Household and the Government) to schools, universities and museums
With respect to the environment -
❖ Minimise our carbon footprint
❖ Minimise and recycle waste
❖ Minimise business travel by using public transport
❖ Use local resources
❖ Minimise the impact of deliveries by using carriers with excellent sustainability programmes and policies
❖ Use leather that is responsibly sourced from the United Kingdom or from Europe where livestock is subject to UK or European standards of welfare
❖ Use leather that is vegetable tanned or tanned with approved chemicals as identified by REACH
❖ Avoid and minimise leather wastage through efficient cutting and use throughout manufacturing
❖ Whenever possible, refurbish, renew and conserve all products we have made supplied to further minimise our carbon footprint
Our Ongoing Commitment -
We will continue to monitor and update our Corporate Responsibility and Ethical Policy when we identify key changes in government and social policy.