Modern Day Slavery Policy

Walters & Cohen is an SME and a RIBA Chartered Practice. Modern day slavery and human trafficking are serious concerns in the construction industry, and we support legislation that aims to combat them. We look to the UK government, the RIBA and the UK charity Unseen for information and guidance.

We are committed to acting ethically and with integrity in all our business relationships, taking reasonable steps to ensure slavery and human trafficking are not taking place in any business or organisation that has any sort of professional relationship with us.

We maintain a zero tolerance policy to slavery and human trafficking. We expect all those in our supply chain and our contractors to adhere to our values.

When we recruit staff we observe our legal obligations; we give all staff a contract and pay the London Living Wage as a minimum.

We have a whistleblowing policy so that staff feel encouraged to voice any concerns and know that they will be protected in doing so. If staff suspect abusive labour practices on one of our construction sites, their first point of contact will be the architect and/or director leading that project.

Walters & Cohen ensures that all staff members receive relevant training and awareness information. Specifically, our senior management team receive detailed training focused on identifying and addressing issues related to modern slavery and human trafficking.

Responsibility for overseeing this policy is held jointly by the Directors, who undertake:

- to review the policy annually.

- to make all staff aware of the policy.

- to report any concerns to the police and/or to Unseen on 08000 121 700 or https://www.modernslaveryhelpline.org/report.