Disability and Carers Service (DCS)
Example of:
How reporting and evaluating can help embed sustainability
Key points:
DCS has integrated sustainability into its Standard Operating Manual asking employees to consider the sustainability impacts of any new initiative or project.
The DCS board receive a sustainability report twice a year.
DCS is an executive agency of the Department for Work and Pensions. It consists of approximately 7000 staff with offices across the country. The agency provides financial support for disabled people and carers through the administration of the following.
- Disability Living Allowance
- Attendance Allowance
- Carer’s Allowance
- Vaccine Damage Payments.
Some of the practical measures that the DCS has implemented to improve sustainability include the following.
- Sustainable development reviews of some of its own business units.
- Integrating sustainability into the DCS ‘Standard Operating Manual’ – see below for the relevant extracts covering sustainable development screening and management responsibilities.
- Providing a sustainability report to the DCS board twice a year.
- Getting weekly reports from their building facilities managers which enables DCS to monitor impacts and report in to central DWP sustainability team quarterly.
DCS Standard Operating Manual
The DCS Standard Operating Model requires the originators of all new initiatives to consider Sustainable Development in addition to financial, headcount, Health and Safety and other impacts when developing their proposals. This consideration is fully documented and is independently reviewed as part of the decision making process. Where there is a clear SD impact and SD has not been fully considered, initiatives are sent directly to DCS’ team of SD experts.
The DCS SD Team contacts the originators of the initiative and provides them with assistance in assessing the potential SD impact and completion of the screening tool. Both positive and negative impacts are captured in this way. Where a negative SD impact is exposed, the team will work with the originator to attempt to mitigate or reduce the negative environmental impacts if it is clear that the initiative will have overall benefits for the Department.
Through including sustainable development and environmental management in the Standard Operating Model (SOM), DCS have acknowledged that SD is a key part of their business processes, ensuring from the outset of use that people are made aware of their moral, legal and regulatory responsibilities. This is reinforced by links to SD related guidance within the SOM, which provides their managers with the tools and information to effectively manage resources and minimise waste.
DCS is undergoing a period of significant organisational change and it was essential that there were effective employee communications. It was decided that the best way to achieve this would be to organise a face-to-face meeting between senior management and a large number of employees where the announcement could be made. No suitable conference facilities were available on site, meaning it was necessary to arrange a large off-site meeting.
The SOM required the conference co-ordinator to use the existing DWP contract to negotiate suitable nearby premises at an appropriate rate. Consideration of the SD impacts, as the SOM requires, identified travel to and from the event had the potential to have a significant and negative environmental impact. As a result and in order to mitigate this effect it was decided to arrange coaches to take employees to and from the venue. This not only reduced the cost, but also the carbon emissions from staff using their own cars for the journey.
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The DCS Sustainable Development Screening Tool
Assess the Impact:
DCS need to ensure that Sustainable Development Policy and Strategy is considered appropriately when developing business initiatives or projects etc. Whilst the work of DCS can be easily related to the social and economic pillars of Sustainable Development, you should also consider the environmental impacts, exploring issues that may fall outside the core business.
Details of your proposal / initiative:
It is important that both positive and negative environmental impacts are identified as early on in the process as possible. This will allow mitigation measures to be fully developed where substantial negative impacts are identified and for a ‘trade-off’ justification to be developed. Any positive impacts that are identified should also be highlighted.
The following questions will help you assess the impact of your proposal on Sustainable Development. Further information can be found on the DWP Sustainable Development website.
1. How will the proposal contribute to social progress, which recognises the needs of everyone?
- example: Tackling poverty and social exclusion, ensuring that disabled people have access to a wide range of goods and services.
2. How will the proposal contribute to maintenance of high and stable levels of economic growth and employment?
- example: Equipping people with the skills to fulfil their potential; more effective use of financial resources; creation of employment opportunities.
3. How will the proposal impact on effective protection of the environment and prudent use of natural resources?
Key Topics which must be covered –
- use of resources, energy, travel, waste:
- Will the proposal cause an increase or decrease in travel for customers or staff?
- Will the proposal require that more resources are used?
- Will more energy be used – either by staff or customers?
- Will the proposal affect the amount of waste produced by customers or staff?
Other topics (to be covered where relevant):
- Land use (where the proposal will lead to changes in the estate there are a large number of issues to be covered – you are advised to consult with the DWP Sustainable Development Team), water use, noise.
Once you have given consideration to and investigated these three questions, please email your responses to XXX.
The information will be used to update the DCS Sustainable Development Action Plan and the Annual Report.