Corporate Social Responsibility

This is even more important in today’s world when we have all the advantages of modern transport systems, communications technology and global markets, and yet there are continuing sharp divides between those who are fortunate and those who are not. The impact of global warming is all too evident and the stresses at the modern workplace continually threaten a healthy and balanced lifestyle. John Laing recognises its corporate social responsibilities (‘CSR’) and is setting high standards so that the Group can make a positive contribution to sustainability and social welfare.
Over the last five years John Laing has restructured itself and this has resulted in a significant change to its operations. The Group is heavily involved in the planning, procurement and operation of social infrastructure and transport systems including schools, hospitals, police stations, roads, bridges and rail systems. Our CSRs are just as important as they ever were and we aim to further develop the culture of social responsibility that has been instilled in the Group over many decades.

CSR WORKING GROUP AND CHAMPIONS
We have recently re-examined our processes for ensuring that CSR is a high priority in everything we do. We have been doing a huge amount of good work in this area but, as in all organisations, we could do more. We have formed a CSR working group which comprises 12 managers representing the four operating divisions of the Group and the centralised functions. This includes three executive Directors of John Laing.
The CSR working group has identified the key elements of CSR on which we will strive to improve on current practice. For each key element we are identifying a CSR Champion whose mission will be to focus on a specific aspect of CSR and make a difference. Each Champion will bring a degree of personal commitment and enthusiasm to his or her specified field. The Champions will focus on key objectives within their respective business units but through the CSR working group their knowledge and experience will be pooled so as to encourage the spreading of best practice across all Group operations.
The CSR working group is conscious that it is not possible to run a large number of initiatives at any one time. The task has therefore been broken down into a manageable number of initiatives on which we can identify easily measurable targets. The benchmarks will be agreed early in 2006 and we will be reporting our achievements against the targets in the 2006 CSR review.
Each CSR Champion will report to the CSR working group on a six monthly basis. A summary report will be presented to and considered by the Board twice a year.

The key elements of CSR for which CSR Champions are being appointed, and on which targets are now being set are as follows:

The Laing Charitable Trust was established over 40 years ago to make donations to individuals and charities. The Company is an active member of Business in the Community (‘BitC’) and is also a member of BitC’s Per Cent Club, which recognises companies that donate at least 1% of pre-tax profits to charitable organisations.

LAING IN THE COMMUNITY
In 2005, the Laing Charitable Trust donated £535,600 to charitable organisations, with particular focus given to those working with the homeless, young disadvantaged people, and education and environmental projects.
Further donations were made though a variety of schemes in which the Laing Charitable Trust participates, including:

Through the Laing Charitable Trust, financial support is available to over 750 former John Laing employees.
As part of Chiltern Railways’ ongoing involvement in the local community, Chiltern Railways driver David Newell, along with retired colleague, Mick Benson, conduct regular visits to schools along the route.
The purpose of the visits is to help increase awareness of the dangers associated with trespass and the safety implications of anti-social behaviour on or around the railway.
The teaching is varied to suit the various group sizes and age groups, which range, for example, from St Mary’s School at Haddenham, where small groups of 5-11 year olds are taught, through to larger schools such as Misbourne School, Great Missenden, where 1,200 students aged between 11 and 18 years old recently attended the talks.
At Upper Heyford, in Oxfordshire, David and Mick work in conjunction with other local organisations, helping lead the Junior Citizen Scheme encouraging local youngsters to be responsible members of the local community.

HUMAN RESOURCES AND STAFF WELFARE
The Company is thoroughly committed to the welfare of its employees, both current and former. Staff members have access to support from a welfare team and to a free, confidential counselling service.

Retired employees
Contact with former employees is maintained through a network of retirement clubs, a quarterly magazine and through the Laing Charitable Trust’s welfare staff who make home visits, as required. Financial assistance is directed, as necessary, towards former staff in need.

Training
Going forward, it is vital that the Group is able to attract, develop and retain highly skilled, experienced and talented people. To that end, we have an ongoing commitment to encouraging and supporting the on going learning and development of all staff, and have developed an in-house training programme offering business-focussed training and development.

Equal opportunities
The Group respects and values diversity and strives to ensure the fair treatment of all staff, where they feel respected, valued and that they have the opportunity to contribute and progress on their own merit.

HEALTH AND SAFETY
The Board receives and considers a health and safety report at all of its scheduled meetings. The Group’s Health and Safety Committee meets quarterly to review changes to legislation, examine accident statistics, recommend training where required and review contractor performance in respect to health and safety implementation across all projects.
The Committee ensures all SPC boards have an appointed director responsible for health and safety. Where the company is involved in a joint-equity arrangement, the company representative will encourage the appointment of a director responsible for health and safety.
All employees are required to attend a health and safety course during the first three months of their employment. This is supplemented with additional training initiatives that were introduced in 2005, including:

There are many examples of environmental protection within our Laing Roads business, including: the installation of Kestrel boxes along the M40 road to encourage population growth of this endangered species; for the A130 road around Chelmsford, the road was re-routed during construction to protect an oak tree of local and historical interest, whilst wildlife culverts were installed along paths of natural movement to allow access for badgers to habitats and territories either side of the road project; the Sirhowy Way road, north of Cardiff in Wales, saw the inclusion of bat and dormice crossings and tree felling was kept to a minimum to allow safe movement for these species. Measures are also being introduced to address light spillage on the Chartis Bridge which may affect bat movement in the area.

ETHICAL CODE
The Board aims to ensure all Group representatives work to high ethical standards. The Code of Conduct we employ covers the following six headings: legal requirements, business ethics, health and safety, employment practices, environment and relationships with external parties. This Code of Conduct is made available to suppliers, staff and other stakeholders.
The Group also operates a fraud policy, incorporating a Whistleblowers’ Charter. Both the fraud policy and the Code of Conduct are available to view on the Company website: www.laing.com.

CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY EXCHANGE ('CRE')
In 2005, the Company subscribed to the London Stock Exchange’s CRE, an online communications platform through which companies can disclose their policies and approach to corporate governance and CSR. The disclosures provide a consistent database of answers to the most commonly asked questions. CRE is accessible to analysts, fund managers, representative bodies and research agencies, and provides them with consistent data to enable research into the Company’s policies and practices in the area of corporate responsibility.