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Mitie’s 2024 ESG report reveals it has met or exceeded 13 of its targets for the last Financial Year (FY24), showing its commitment to each of its social value pillars – Environment, People, Communities and Responsible Supply Chain.
Key highlights from the report included:
- Environment
Working towards its ‘Plan Zero’ initiative to reach net zero Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 2025, Mitie has cut its Scope 1 and 2 emissions by five per cent. The biggest contributors to this reduction were introducing low-carbon heat pumps across its sites and continuation of its transition to electric vehicles (EVs). Having welcomed its 5,000th EV this year, two thirds (66 per cent) of Mitie’s fleet is now pure electric, meaning it operates one of the biggest electric fleets in the UK.
In recognition of these milestones and its ongoing environmental leadership, Mitie was awarded an ‘A’ grade for its carbon reduction strategy and reporting by the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), putting it among the top two per cent of organisations assessed annually.
Going beyond its own environmental impact, with its expertise across a range of green solutions, from solar power to biodiversity, Mitie has also continued to help its customers achieve their net zero targets. Highlights during FY24 include increasing London Euston station’s recycling rates from 10 per cent to 81 per cent with a new on-site recycling facility and installing 2,000 solar panels at the Associated British Ports, Southampton site to reduce carbon emissions by 235 tonnes a year.
- People
Mitie has continued investing in training and development to create long-term, fulfilling careers for colleagues. It supported over 1,200 apprentices at any one time over FY24, offering 90 apprenticeship courses. This includes the new Professional Security Operative Level 2 apprenticeship, which Mitie played a leading role in developing to drive more career progression opportunities for the security industry, and a heat pump engineer apprenticeship, to help grow the UK’s green workforce.
Mitie also passed the £2 million milestone for Apprenticeship Levy gifting pledges in April this year. Through the Levy, Mitie has enabled over 25 small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and local community services across the UK to fund apprenticeship schemes.
- Communities
Mitie exceeded all of its goals under the Community pillar, upholding its pledge to make a difference in the communities it serves. This includes delivering almost 25,000 hours of volunteering to local causes as a result of its initiative to gift colleagues 10 hours a year.
Mitie’s independent charity, The Mitie Foundation, which works to help support those from disadvantaged groups secure employment, also celebrated its 10th anniversary. Mitie recruited 418 individuals through the Mitie Foundation in the past year, as well as welcoming 790 forces leavers as part of its ongoing support for the Armed Forces community.
- Responsible Supply Chain
Priding itself on being a responsible business, Mitie spent just under half (47.7 per cent) of its supply chain spend with SMEs and £3.3 million with voluntary, community and social enterprises (VCSEs) – 46 per cent above its target. Supply chain emissions also reduced by 12 per cent compared to FY23, marking the end of a three-year supply chain transformation programme which focused on promoting sustainability through procurement.
Peter Dickinson, Chief Legal Officer, Mitie, said: “As one of Britain’s biggest businesses we are committed to making a positive impact on our people, communities and the environment. With our 2025 net zero targets fast approaching, it’s great to see that this year we exceeded so many of our goals.
“We’ve been able to use what we’ve learnt from our own decarbonisation success to support our customers with their sustainability strategies, to broaden our impact and support Britain’s net zero journey.”
To read the full ESG report 2024 click here.
Frontline workers form the backbone of facilities management services, serving as the face of the brand and interacting directly with customers. Yet research by both L&G and the Living Wage Foundation reveals the majority feel overlooked and expendable.
Accelerating the problem is a growing technology gap. Despite having 2.7 billion deskless workers worldwide, representing 80 per cent of the global workforce, only one per cent of software and technology investments has been allocated to this segment. This means there is a huge disconnect between frontline workers and their headquarters, leading to lack of sufficient training, communication challenges and low employee retention.
For this webinar, FMJ has teamed up with frontline training platform Lingio to bring together a panel of experts, to discuss how easy-to-use and efficient AI tools can help create engaging and gamified learning experiences that fit the needs of underserved deskless workers. The result? Better software and learning experiences lead to improved staff engagement and reduced staff turnover by up to 95 per cent, according to McKinsey.
To register for the webinar taking place on 11 September at 11:00 am click here.
