Responsible Business

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Our commitment to responsible business

For us, a responsible business is one that encompasses profitability and the welfare of its people, the development of communities and the protection of the environment.

It adheres to ethical principles, minimises negative societal impacts and promotes positive contributions to society – while striving for long-term success.

Our approach to responsible business covers four key principles:

  • People: Creating a diverse, inclusive and high-performance work environment where people can develop and reach their full potential.
  • Planet: Minimising negative environmental impact across our value chain and sharing expertise to deliver positive climate action.
  • Prosperity: Generating profit responsibly, investing in the communities in which we operate and contributing to local economies.
  • Governance: Integrating responsible business considerations within our strategy and decision making.

People

Our people are our greatest asset. Our aim is to provide an inclusive and open working environment built on shared values which celebrates diversity, encourages people to look after their own and each other’s wellbeing and provides clear career paths and opportunities to grow.

The ongoing delivery of our D&I Strategy, the suite of wellbeing benefits offered across our offices and the range of professional development programmes provided at each stage of our people’s career journeys all contribute to this aim.

We know this type of working environment not only benefits our people, but also our clients who rely on us to provide innovative solutions to their most complex matters.

Planet

As the impact of increasing global temperatures continues to be felt, we are committed to minimising negative environmental impact across our value chain and sharing expertise to deliver positive climate action.

WFW has committed to global environmental targets, approved by the Science-Based Targets initiative (SBTi), to reduce our overall carbon footprint by over 50% by 2032.

To support delivery against our targets and set us on the path to Net Zero, in FY24 we published a refreshed firm-wide Carbon Reduction Plan and Global Environmental Charter, co-developed with global consultancy WSP.

PROSPERITY

As part of our commitment to shared prosperity, we are focussed on using our skills and expertise to partner with charitable organisations helping address key social issues relevant to our firm, our sectors and communities.

Our lawyers deliver pro bono support across a range of social issues including access to justice, action on energy poverty and work within our sectors to further improve labour conditions.

We are also taking action to improve access to the legal profession through outreach with students from lower socio-economic backgrounds. Our work to date has involved regular insight days with local schools, as well as longer term partnerships with organisations including Causeway Education in London with whom we work to provide career support and mentoring to students aged 16-18 considering their next steps in education or employment.

GOVERNANCE

Our aim is to continue to integrate responsible business considerations within our strategy and decision making.

Looking ahead, we are committed to further external engagement with our peers and clients, to ensure we are embedding responsible governance and practices that effectively address material responsible business issues for the legal sector.

This includes taking a more responsible approach to procurement and supplier compliance through our partnership with EcoVadis and our commitment to the Legal Charter 1.5.