Modern Slavery Statement

Modern Slavery Statement

Introduction

We are committed to continually improving our practices in order to prevent modern slavery and human trafficking from occurring within our business and supply chain. We expect the same high standards from our suppliers.

Funeral Partners Ltd (Company Number: 06276941) meets the criteria in Section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 and it is therefore required to publish a modern slavery and human trafficking statement.

Organisational structure

Funeral Partners Ltd is part of the Funeral Partners Group and its ultimate parent company is Funeral Partners TopCo Ltd (Company Number: 09622057). Funeral Partners Ltd has around 1,200 people in its workforce, and we operate in the United Kingdom only. Funeral Partners Ltd is making this statement on behalf of the Funeral Partners Group as the principal trading company.

Our business

Funeral Partners Ltd owns and operates funeral homes in the United Kingdom. The company is also affiliated with Funeral Services Northern Ireland Ltd (Company Number: 03983186), the Alternative Planning Company Ltd (Company Number: 08635411) which provides funeral pre-payment plans, and Lockerley Stone & Masonry Ltd (Company Number: 02725887) which supplies memorial masonry.

Our supply chains

In order to provide personalised and relevant products and services to our clients, we work with a broad range of suppliers. We consider some of our key suppliers to be those providing the following products and services:

  • Coffins and related products e.g. ashes caskets/urns
  • Floral tributes
  • Memorial masonry
  • Funeral stationery
  • Vehicles
  • Chemicals
  • Uniforms
  • Technology equipment

We have identified that memorial masonry, technology equipment and uniform provision may give rise to a higher risk of modern slavery and human trafficking in the supply chain. The following reasons explain the focus on these particular three areas:

  • Uniform and technology equipment: These products are specifically called out in the Global Slavery Index as higher risk in the UK marketplace and are likely to involve a complex supply chain
  • Memorial masonry: The extraction process of the stone and location of the quarries could pose a higher risk in the supply chain of modern slavery

Policies

To support our commitment to preventing modern slavery and human trafficking from occurring within our business and supply chain, we have in place the following policies:

  • Due diligence policy
  • Supplier Code of Conduct
  • Anti-slavery and human trafficking policy
  • Whistleblowing and Speak Up policy

We ensure that relevant suppliers are aware of these policies, and we continue to expect that they adhere to the same high standards we aim for ourselves.

Supply Chain Due diligence

Where we have identified that a particular area of our supply chain poses a higher risk of modern slavery and human trafficking, we have in place the following additional measures:

  • Requesting the supplier’s own policies and procedures in relation to modern slavery
  • Encouraging suppliers to develop a more detailed understanding of the next level of the supply chain, in order to further understand and manage risk
  • Discussing existing or planned accreditation regimes (e.g. Sedex)
  • Reviewing the support required in order to map the supply chain

Generally speaking, we also try to adopt the following protocols within our business:

  • Limiting the number of suppliers of any particular service (particularly those of higher risk) in order to focus on engagement and risk management with a smaller number of suppliers, whilst at the same time balancing this with the risk of reliance on any one supplier
  • Building trusted and long-standing relationships with our key suppliers
  • Concentrating our immediate supply chain within UK geography, where possible and appropriate
  • Upskilling key members of our business in relation to modern slavery i.e. those who are best placed to manage and mitigate risks in this area, such as those involved in procurement and ongoing supplier management
  • Reviewing the supply chain as a specific risk with any businesses we intend to acquire
  • Reviewing changes to our suppliers’ supply chain as part of quarterly supplier performance and strategy meetings
  • Following best practice in our own recruitment processes, including reference checking and screening protocols, along with other robust identity checking methods

Effectiveness and performance indicators

We measure the success and continual improvement of our efforts in combatting modern slavery and human trafficking by a number of key performance indicators, as follows:

  • The number of risk assessments undertaken which indicate a risk of modern slavery, with outcomes formally captured at our monthly Risk Governance Committee
  • Logging and monitoring the number of suppliers we have for each product and service we offer, in order to continually understand our supply chain risks
  • Logging and monitoring the number of formal accreditations obtained by our suppliers which are of relevance to combatting modern slavery
  • Logging, monitoring and escalating any suspected instances of modern slavery (including through our whistleblowing and speak up processes)
  • External assurance from industry experts, as required
  • Benchmarking and collaboration with wider industry experts, competitors and trade associations

 Training and awareness

In order to ensure that workers in our business, and suppliers to our business, have an effective understanding of the risks of modern slavery and human trafficking, we have introduced an anti-slavery and human trafficking policy. The policy has been communicated throughout the business through a formal cascade, and we include it in our induction programme for new starters. We have also identified individuals in the business who may have additional specific training needs in relation to modern slavery.

Action in 2022-2023

Throughout the financial year 2022-2023, we implemented the following actions as a business in order to ensure continued improvement in our ability to minimise the risk of modern slavery and human trafficking:

Masonry

  • Continued focus on our masonry supply chain in order to understand masonry supply chain risk. We now track the number of masonry suppliers who take part in the Sedex framework for supply chain management. In our Financial Year 22/23, 65% of masonry sales were from suppliers involved in the Sedex programme, which is an increase on the last Financial Year
  • Ongoing consolidation of the masonry supply chain which enables further opportunity for engagement and risk management over key suppliers when it comes to modern slavery risk

 Clothing

  • Focus on uniform supply chain. Our supplier has appointed Sedex Global and uses the Base Code of the Ethical Trading Initiative to support their supplier inspections and review their manufacturing sites

 Technology equipment

  • Focus on IT procurement. We have a consolidated supply chain for IT equipment and our supplier has published its own slavery and human trafficking statement

  Speak up / Whistleblowing

  • As part of a wider piece of training and engagement relating to culture and good conduct, we have reminded our teams on the risks of modern slavery and the avenues available to them to flag any concerns
  • Reminders about the risks of modern slavery practices take place amongst our management population every two months

General

  • Ongoing monitoring of KPIs associated with modern slavery with reviews of modern slavery risk taking place monthly as part of our Risk Management Framework
  • Continued development of our supplier due diligence policy and procurement processes in this area including review of risks arising as part of supplier onboarding and ongoing assessment (via a new Supplier Code of Conduct framework). For example, supplier due diligence takes place prior to onboarding and, for our higher risk suppliers, questions associated with the risks of modern slavery are posed as part of the process. In addition, progress is reported at both our Operational Risk Governance forum and reviewed at our Risk Governance Committee.

 Future focus

  • Focussing on upskilling specific job roles in relation to minimising the risk of modern slavery
  • Further dialogue with our highest risk suppliers in order to better map the supply chain
  • Reviewing general training and awareness for all colleagues around the risks of modern slavery, including how to identify modern slavery red flags in their own work and home lives
  • Continued capturing and monitoring of any relevant supplier-related milestones and timescales associated with modern slavery risk minimisation
  • Continued ongoing monitoring of KPIs associated with modern slavery

This statement is made pursuant to Section 54 (1) of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 and constitutes Funeral Partners Ltd’s modern slavery and human trafficking statement for the financial year ending 30th September 2023.

This statement was approved by Funeral Partners Ltd’s Board on 27th March 2024.

Signature: Sam Kershaw
Funeral Partners Ltd.
31st March 2024