Operating responsibly
Managing our social impact
Our goals are simple. To help make our environment and community a better place, and operate responsibly and ethically as a business. This means leveraging our know-how, financial resources and the commitment and enthusiasm of our people to improve life in the communities and areas in which we live and work.
We improve the world through innovation. It’s what drives our people to deliver their best and why our partners, in Defence, Government and Industry trust us to solve their most technically challenging, mission critical problems.
Together, we are building a safer and secure world by designing, combining and applying emerging technologies in innovative ways that keep people safe and secure, while delivering value.
Our approach is focused around:
- Establishing a strong and proactive safety and wellbeing culture
- Reducing our environmental impact
- Investing in and respecting our people
- Conducting our business with integrity
Looking after our people
Wellbeing
The health and wellbeing of our people is important to us. We invest time and effort in this to ensure that we preserve, protect and promote a healthy workplace through our Mental Health First Aiders, People Partners and our Healthy Workplace Champions.
What we do:
- Dedicated People and Health, Safety and Environment (HSE) teams
- An Employee Assistance Programme
- Fully trained Mental Health First Aiders at every Roke site
- One of the first businesses to be certified to the international standard ISO45003:2021 (Psychological Health and Safety at Work)
- HSE management systems are certified to International standards ISO45001: 2018 (Occupational Health and Safety) and ISO 14001: 2015 (Environmental)
- Social clubs that build camaraderie in the workplace
- A gym located on our Romsey site and discount to various gyms across the UK offered as a taxable benefit
- A cycle to work scheme
- A dedicated employee value proposition
- Free flu vaccinations and eyecare vouchers
- An employee discount programme
- Flexible working arrangements to support individuals
- A culture underpinned by our identified Roke Behaviours, as well as Chemring Group's values of Safety, Excellence and Innovation
- A dedicated COVID-19 policy
We are one roke
Equal opportunities
We are one Roke. Our strength comes from our diverse backgrounds and perspectives. We all have a responsibility to create an environment where we have the freedom, support and trust to succeed - where we are encouraged to bring our best self to work.
What we do:
- Created The Roke Academy to help bridge the UK's tech skill gap and train people who may not have come from traditional technology backgrounds
- Honest and open yearly Gender Pay Gap report
- Provide graduate and technical degree apprentice schemes
- Employee resource groups that represent Rokies from all walks of life including ethnic minorities, the LGBTQ+ community, women in Roke, neurodiversity and the veteran’s community
- Work closely with schools and colleges to inspire young people to take an active interest STEM subjects
- A generous employee referral scheme to reward our colleagues who bring new talent to Roke
- Commitment to operating as a diverse and inclusive employer by working with a number of dedicated charities and organisations including; Re-Employ, Stonewall, Creased Puddle and more
- Complete Human Rights and Modern Slavery Act statements
- Supporting our armed forces community as demonstrated by receiving a Gold Award for the Armed Forces Covenant's Employer Recognition Scheme
Becoming carbon neutral by 2030
Sustainability and the environment
Continually improving our sustainability performance plays a key role in the way we run our businesses today and plan for the future, as we manage our environmental, social and governance (ESG)-related risks.
You can find our published Carbon Reduction Plan here.
What we do:
- A complete Carbon Reduction plan that reduces our emissions year-on-year and will be carbon neutral by 2030
- Electric charging points installed at our Romsey site
- Reduced our carbon footprint by 70% through green tariffs for electricity
- Further reduction of our carbon footprint through the use of Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO)
- Operating as ‘Zero to Landfill’ and our waste practices ensure that all waste produced is recycled or recovered both on and off-site
- Managing circa 400 trees on our Romsey site which are subject to preservation orders
- Investing in the continual management of the local environment and eco systems
Working as a trusted partner
Governance and business conduct
We’re committed to conducting our business in an ethical and responsible manner at all times, and in full compliance with all applicable laws and regulations. To achieve this we have developed an inclusive culture where everyone does the right thing and takes personal responsibility for their actions.
Good governance and ethical behaviour underpins our evolving sustainability agenda and ensures that we operate safely, responsibly and in compliance with current legislation in all our jurisdictions. We have put in place the necessary policies and procedures to enable us to operate with integrity and transparency, and to the highest ethical standards.
What we do:
- An enhanced Operational Framework covering subjects from business ethics to competition law compliance
- A published Code of Conduct
- Anti-bribery and corruption policies and procedures
- A comprehensive Whistleblowing Policy
- Created The Roke Academy to help bridge the UK's tech skill gap and train people who may not have come from traditional technology backgrounds
- Complete Human Rights and Modern Slavery Act statements
- A comprehensive statement of supplier principles and code of conduct
Working responsibily, together
Responsible supply chain
We work closely with suppliers from all over the world to deliver mission success for our customers. Our aim is for them to recognise Roke as the customer of choice by actively competing for our business and working hard to retain it. We’re fully committed to dealing honestly and fairly with our suppliers, and encourage them to share in our values and behaviours.
We follow the Chemring Group Operational Framework which provides the governance under which we operate. The framework is our reference source for all policies and training materials. This includes the Chemring Group Supplier Code of Conduct which sets out the standards of behaviour we expect from our suppliers, including a commitment to sound and ethical business conduct. Suppliers are encouraged to share this code with their employees, partners and sub-contractors and the importance of compliance with the standards as set out within it.
What we do:
- Minimising barriers to entry for small and medium sized enterprises through our continued participation within the Joint Supply Chain Accreditation Register (JOSCAR), a single repository for supplier pre-qualification and compliance information
- Follow a risk measured approach in our supplier due diligence ensuring that we identify and manage corporate risk and build structured collaborative relationships with our most important suppliers
- Continue to grow our ‘ecosystem’ of small and medium sized suppliers who are at the very heart of the our business and a key driver for our future growth and sustainability agenda
- Partner with our supply chains to identify innovative solutions which focus on reducing our carbon emissions and identifying cleaner energy resources
- Integrating environmental sustainability into our supply chain through the optimised use of resources and minimising waste through re-use and recycling initiatives
Get in touch
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