Policies

We develop our policies to reflect best practice and comply with relevant legislation. Nationwide's policies are currently under review internally and will be reviewed by a forthcoming stakeholder panel.

Click to view summaries of our policies on:

• human rights
• members
• employees
• communities
• environment
• biodiversity
• partners
• sustainable purchasing

Human Rights Policy

We recognise our responsibility to protect human rights. As a minimum we will:

• respect international laws and practices, specifically the United Nation's Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UNUDHR)
• aim to apply the principles of the UNUDHR when we deal with our members, employees, the communities in which we operate, the environment and our partners

Human Rights Management:

Our Human Rights Policy is integrated into our day to day operations and implemented through many policies and procedures such as:

• fair treatment at work
• diversity and equality of opportunity
• whistleblowing procedure for raising concerns at work
• sustainability
• data protection
• ethical purchasing

In summary we will:

• treat all members, employees and other partners fairly, openly and honestly
• strive to stop discrimination and harassment
• provide a healthy and safe environment for our members, employees, and other partners
• implement our Ethical Purchasing Policy encouraging good labour standards in our supply chains
• encourage employee diversity
• ensure our employees are fairly remunerated
• communicate clearly with our employees and respect their right to join a trade union
• recognise and support the need for a good work-life balance

The Sustainability Committee, Executive Directors Committee, Board and other committees will monitor progress against appropriate targets and actions.

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Member Policy

With our members' interests at the heart of everything we do, we will:

• treat all members fairly and honestly
• protect members' privacy (unless the law demands otherwise)
• make every effort to meet members' needs through services and products that best suit their personal financial circumstances
• ensure that all products are promoted and described in a straightforward manner, with no hidden clauses or catches
• make our services widely accessible and promote financial inclusion
• consult our members and, where appropriate, act on their feedback
• provide a safe, healthy and attractive environment for visitors to Nationwide premises
• continuously evaluate our products in order to take account of social and environmental considerations

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Employee Policy

We believe that a happy and healthy workforce is good for business, and we pride ourselves on our reputation as one of the UK's top employers. We will:

• treat all employees fairly and honestly
• reward our employees with a competitive rate of pay and benefits
• provide flexible working practices that adapt to the lifestyles of individuals to help attract, develop and retain talented employees
• maintain an open, honest and constructive dialogue with our employees
• encourage and support employees in the realisation of their full potential
• communicate clearly the standards of performance, behaviours and attitudes required to achieve our business goals and to ensure the well-being of fellow employees
• listen to the views of employees and, where reasonable, act upon them
• provide a healthy, safe and comfortable working environment
• strive for equal opportunities at all levels of our business
• encourage employee diversity to reflect and understand the communities where we operate and eliminate discrimination

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Community Policy

Through active involvement, the way we work and our community relations programme, we will:

• support, contribute to and improve the quality of life of the communities in which we operate
• support projects that are relevant and effective in addressing community needs
• against set criteria, provide financial and in-kind support to charitable organisations and community groups

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Environment Policy

We recognise that everything we do has an impact on the environment. We will:

• improve our understanding of the environmental impact of our decisions and actions
• systematically improve the environmental performance of our operations
• use energy and other resources wisely
• accept responsibility for any harm we cause to the environment
• manage our land sensitively and promote biodiversity
• regularly review our significant environmental impacts

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Biodiversity Policy

We will:

• protect and improve the biodiversity of our land through the management of native habitats and species
• provide information for employees to become involved in biodiversity improvement
• support organisations to improve biodiversity beyond our own land

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Partners Policy

We believe that working in partnership with others is an effective way to do business. We will:

• systematically improve the environmental impacts of our partnerships
• ensure fairness and respect for people's and community rights in all our relationships
• encourage and support our partners to strive for the same sense of responsibility and commitment towards sustainability
• work with our partners to promote improved awareness of sustainability
• share learning about sustainability with our partners

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Sustainable Purchasing Policy

Nationwide is committed to addressing environmental, social and ethical issues in its purchasing activities; and to working effectively with its suppliers in order to deliver better practice. In support of this commitment, we are promoting a responsible attitude towards environmental, social and ethical issues in our supply chain. We will do this by:

• dealing ethically, responsibly and fairly with our suppliers
• requiring that all suppliers comply with relevant legal requirements according to industry guidelines and standards and are able to demonstrate compliance
• assessing supplier awareness and performance in relation to environmental, social and ethical issues affecting their business
• taking our assessment results into account when selecting and reviewing suppliers and work with them where high risks are identified to promote improved awareness, performance, competitiveness and long term relationships
• encouraging suppliers to make us aware of goods and services that are environmentally and socially responsible and promote development of such goods and services

Where appropriate, we will also engage with Government, NGOs and other organisations to share innovation and experience as we monitor our progress towards achieving the aims of this Policy. We will review the Policy and any supporting processes as appropriate.

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