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Corporate responsibility is about recognising that the way we conduct our business has an impact upon our local and wider communities. 

Blakemore Retail operates a modern, successful, retail business that has been built upon a commitment to ensure that we have a positive influence on the way we treat our staff, our customers, the communities in which we trade and the environment. 

The idea of corporate responsibility within our business is not new, but now, more than ever, it is an issue for consideration, whether we are going about our daily business or embarking on major new ventures. 

Our corporate responsibility programme has and will continue to evolve in conjunction with the diverse and dynamic changing marketplace in which we find ourselves. 

We break our corporate responsibility programme down into the key areas of the workplace, marketplace, community and environment. 

Below is a list of some of our key activity within each area:  
 

Workplace:

Investors in People
Blakemore Retail's commitment to corporate responsibility has not gone unnoticed and since December 2002 the company has been recognised as an Investors in People employer.  Our last assessment in 2009 achieved a glowing assessment that highlighted the impact of company values in building a successful business. 

Training
Blakemore Retail has a substantial annual training budget, and there is sound business reasoning behind it.  The cost of training is considered to be an investment in our people and we want to ensure that training is delivered to employees at all levels throughout the business.  Our aim is to continue to develop the training strategy in order to meet the needs of the business and develop the people within it. 

Consultation
We seek to constantly improve the way we relate to and communicate with our employees.  We have several established initiatives in place such as the Staff Consultation Group, managers forums, conferences and meetings.  We have also introduced an employee survey that allows us to measure and act upon the opinions of our employees.

Staff Care
We hope to foster good employee relations through our extensive Staff Care Package that continues to grow and develop each year.  This includes flagship programmes such as our Staff Lottery, Staff Social Fund and Long Service Awards.

Pension Scheme
Although many companies have withdrawn pension schemes in recent times, A.F. Blakemore remains committed to providing a pension scheme for eligible Blakemore Retail employees.

Marketplace:

Regional Lines
In response to our customers' needs we stock many regional lines throughout the company.  For example many stores in Lincolnshire are supplied with a range of bread and cakes from the ever-popular AW Curtis of Lincoln.  Similarly our customers in Wales enjoy a range of locally produced cheeses and cooked meats from R.H. Evans.  We feel that it is important to support our local suppliers wherever possible. 
 

Community:

Charitable Giving
Our employees have earned a well deserved reputation for fundraising.  Over the past four years staff have raised more than £1m for our Charity of the Year, the NSPCC, through a range of wild and wacky in-store and out of store activities.  In addition our stores undertake a range of fundraising for good causes in the communities they serve and utilise the resources of the company’s charitable fund, the Blakemore Foundation, to supplement this. 

Employee Volunteering
Between January 2010 and July 2011, a total of 60 members of the Blakemore Retail team have donated 666 hours to help out a range of local community organisations.  Our team have undertaken 13 separate projects across our trading area, which range from painting community centres and scout huts to creating allotments and nature gardens at primary schools. 
 

Environment:

Energy Efficiency
Energy usage represents our biggest impact upon the environment.  To counter this we have begun to introduce Smart Metering across our estate to monitor and ultimately reduce our energy usage.  We have also placed increased focus in recent years upon the introduction of more energy efficient refrigeration and lighting in our stores. 

Carrier Bag Usage
To minimise the waste caused by plastic bags, we have introduced a series of reusable carrier bags, available to customers in all of our stores.  We have also introduced a levy upon single use carrier bags to encourage shoppers to utilise reusable bags and reduce the amount of waste sent to landfill.  The proceeds of this charge are donated to the NSPCC.

Paper Usage
Our stores now boast paperless audit rolls and we have ceased the practice of giving out customer receipts (unless requested).  Double side printers have also been introduced across our estate.  We are on a constant search to reduce our paper usage and a recent working group has been established within the business specifically tasked with investigating the possibility of creating a paperless in-store environment. 

Packaging
The nature of our fresh food department requires a large quantity of packaging.  In order to minimise the environmental impact of this, the company uses packaging that is 100% recyclable in all of its Food to Go departments.  Our stores also separate and return packaging to our main Blakemore Logistics depot for recycling. 

Noise
We have introduced noise attenuation systems to our estate to reduce the decibel levels of our condenser units.