About us

Environment

"We regard environmental regulations, laws and codes of practice as the minimum standard that we should aim for and will actively work towards exceeding these benchmarks.

"We are committed to setting targets designed to improve our environmental performance and will perform regular audits to ensure these targets are met. Our policies will be implemented through guidelines and staff training."
Bryan Hughes, Chief Executive 

Download our environmental and sustainability policy

Practical steps we've taken

Recycling
In 2009, we recycled 73% of our waste.  Our current target is to achieve a 75% recycling rate by 2012 . The firm aims to reduce waste to landfill so far as is reasonably practicable. Non-recyclable waste from the London, Birmingham and Nottingham offices goes to incineration, and food waste from London is composted.

Our Carbon Footprint
In 2006/2007 we measured our carbon footprint for the first time. This provided us with a baseline from which we could measure our energy consumption. 

We have measured our footprint each subsequent year, and the results are as follows:-

2006/2007 - 16,914 tonnes CO2e.  This equates to around 4.5 tonnes of CO2e per employee for the year.

2007/2008 - 12,080 tonnes CO2e.  This equates to approximately 4.4 tonnes of CO2e per employee.

2008/2009 - 8,612 tonnes CO2e.   This equates to approximately 3.19 tonnes of CO2e per employee.

The sector range for a business such as ours is between 3 and 8 tonnes per employee each year.

We aim to continually reduce our carbon emissions, in line with reductions in energy, travel and waste production.

Energy usage
We are committed to reducing our energy usage and have set a reduction target of 2.5% per year, for the next four years.

Eversheds' Energy Policy Statement

There is increasing pressure on firms to formally integrate sustainability into policy and practice, which reflects a wider local, national and international commitment to sustainable development. Legislative pressures, such as the Climate Change Act 2008 and the Carbon Reduction Commitment and voluntary measures such as the Carbon Disclosure Project influence the way organisations choose to manage their energy consumption.

Eversheds is committed to minimising its impact on the environment and promoting sustainability. This policy supports Eversheds' Environmental and Sustainability Policy and formalises the firm's commitment to energy management and reducing carbon emissions.

Alan Meredith
March 2009

Sustainable Travel
Our business travel policy has been developed to discourage unnecessary travel and promote environmentally friendly travel habits. During 2008/09 we reduced business travel by over 5% and in 2009/10 we aim to reduce business travel by a further 10%. Read our sustainable business travel policy.

Sustainable procurement
Our procurement process ensures that our suppliers have the same environmental principles as ours and are actively reducing their environmental impact. We are developing questionnaires for our suppliers and we only work with companies with environmental principles in line with ours. Read our procurement policy.

Building a greener tomorrow
We aim to ensure that all our new offices have at least a high BREEAM (Building Research Assessment Method) rating. Our London headquarters and Leeds office have both achieved an Excellent rating.

Environmental best practice and leadership

Carbon Trust Standard 2009
The firm has been awarded the Carbon Trust Standard. The firm has reduced its carbon footprint by the equivalent of a ten hour flight for each employee which adds up to a saving of 866 tonnes of CO2 a year.

The Carbon Trust Standard is the world's first carbon award that requires an organisation to measure, manage and reduce its carbon footprint and actually make real reductions year on year.

Bryan Hughes, chief executive designate at Eversheds said:
"Eversheds is committed to reducing its carbon footprint and taking real action on the impact the firm's facilities and operations have on the environment. Achieving the Carbon Trust Standard is a great way of showing that we have and will continue to take action on climate change and a way to communicate our environmental credentials to those that matter."

Green 500
We are proud to be one of the launch members of the Green 500 - a carbon management service linked to a performance awards scheme for large London based businesses and organisations.

Clean City Award Scheme
In January 2010, the firm was awarded The Chairman's Cup at the Clean City Award ceremony. This scheme recognises best practices in waste management and waste reduction and enable firms in The City of London to share best practice.  

Legal Sector Alliance
The Legal Sector Alliance enables law firms work with each other to address the issues of sustainability and contribute to the climate change agenda. The aim is to develop best practice principles and working methods uniquely suited to the needs of the legal sector.

Mayor of London's Green Procurement Code
Eversheds has signed-up to the Green Procurement Code that commits us to reducing the effects of our activities on the environment. By signing up to the Code, we have set progressive environmental targets.

The May Day Network
Eversheds is a member of the May Day network, the UK's largest group of businesses and organisations committed to collectively tackling climate change. Visit the May Day Network website for more information.

Our offices

UK offices gain international standard for environmental management
Our UK offices have all achieved certification to ISO14001.  Attaining this international standard for environmental management shows a real commitment by the firm to corporate responsibility.  However, the hard work does not stop there, as we continue to maintain and develop our environmental practices across the firm.

Contact us

If you have any comments, queries or suggestions relating to environmental management and carbon measurement, please contact clairegoody@eversheds.com.