About Us

As a business made up of over 5,000 people, we recognise the importance of raising awareness amongst colleagues and our members, and that small changes in behaviour can make a real difference.

What are the Green Team and what do they do?

Quite simply it's a team of nearly 300 people across the business who have volunteered to help the whole of Britannia to implement a plan of activity that will make a positive difference. They have targeted reductions in energy and paper usage and improvements in recycling.

The team have already made a real difference, and in recognition of this members of the team were invited to speak at a seminar at the House of Commons about their experience of how to reduce carbon emissions in a business environment.

The environmental charity Global Action Plan have been working with Britannia since 2005 and commented;

“We have been impressed by Britannia Building Society’s commitment to reduce environmental impact year on year, irrespective of growth. Britannia has involved all staff in its drive to be greener, through first engaging staff in the head offices and then rolling out an initiative to every branch across the network. Britannia’s staff are now aware of the simple steps they can take to reduce CO2 emissions“

Recognising our people's contribution

There are many examples which show the enthusiasm of our people - here are just a few:

• Our Fishponds branch were recognised for recycling everything from posters and envelopes to plastic bottles, as well as involving local business to collect stamps and milk bottle tops to raise money for local charities
• At our Thornbury branch, colleagues have been inspiring local students by bringing them in branch to show them what they can do to make a difference
• The Aberdeen branch won an award for their efforts to reduce waste and increase recycling levels as well as switching off lights when rooms are not in use - they also liaise with local branches to reduce the amount of stationary they order.

All employees receive regular training sessions with the aim being to raise general awareness of climate change, to understand how this impacts on Britannia and what we can all do to make a difference. Our people are encouraged to tell us if we can do more through bi-annual employee surveys, which are managed independent of the Society, as well as through Group-wide discussions.

Involving our members

As our key stakeholders, the views of our members are important to us. We are continually listening to our members, and encouraging members to play an active part in the running of their society.

At our 2007 Annual General Meeting we asked members their opinion on varying aspects of social responsibility including whether they were happy for us to reduce our environmental impact, even if it cost a little more. Over 88% of respondents told us that we should.

When making decisions, we always ask ourselves if it's in the interests of the membership as a whole, rather than an individual or group of members. To help us with this we consult our Members' Council, for instance the Council recently gave us their views to help us develop our ethical purchasing policy.