Putting sustainability front and centre
Sustainability is a core business commitment at Rendall & Rittner and is a key part of our mission statement and business plan. We know we can deliver much more than standard asset and property management services and can have a greater, more positive impact on the environment and local communities.
At the outset of our sustainability journey in the 2000s we sought to understand client requirements through our bi-annual client survey, recognising that we would need a range of options that we could deliver on, and that clients and residents could select and benefit from.
Our sustainability solutions impact positively on supporting client commitments whilst delivering savings for residents wherever possible. They are designed for the long-term, however we are constantly evolving and expanding our activities.
Our innovative procurement practices have enabled significant environmental gains across the portfolio of properties we manage. Ecotricity have been supplying 100% renewable energy to our developments since our partnership began in 2019 and last year this saved 20,982 tonnes of CO2e. Using Delphis Eco’s plant-based cleaning products across our supply chain since 2015 saves an estimated 477 tonnes of CO2 emissions annually.
We are lucky to have employees that genuinely care about these matters, and they are encouraged to get on board with our journey to become a more sustainable business. Sustainability initiatives are promoted via internal meetings, broadcasts, Yammer and our intranet, but it is also great to see team members actively involved with volunteering days, litter picking and recycling initiatives.
We are continuing to find ways to reduce our carbon footprint. In recent years through flexible and agile working for our c.400 non-property management staff we have reduced the number of daily commutes to an office by 90%. And as a result of reconfiguring our Head Office at St George Wharf in Vauxhall, we have recently donated unwanted office furniture to schools via Waste to Wonder.
Inspiring the residents of the developments we manage to embrace sustainability is also important. We’ve learnt the most effective way to do that is through community and connection. We run a comprehensive programme of events that bring residents together, creating a sense of pride in where they live, a desire to protect the environment and to give back through fundraising. More than 250 events have been held in the last five years with over 13,000 residents taking part, raising more than £40,000 for good causes.
We’ve organised initiatives including clothes recycling, bike collections and toy appeals including for example through White Rose collection banks where donations by residents exceeded 131,000kg of unwanted clothes last year, raising a whopping c.£200,149!
We strongly believe that it’s down to all of us to take steps in our own lives and businesses to become more environmentally responsible, because together we can make a difference.
