CSR
Corporate Social Responsibility
The Board of Johnston Press has made a clear commitment to operating all of the Group's business activities to the highest standards of business ethics and integrity. These principles are not only contained in the Group’s Corporate Social Responsibility Statement but it is also policy to include them in contracts of employment.
Business Ethics
The code of ethics specifically requires adherence to all legal requirements. It has a clear policy and procedure for addressing issues such as bribery, corruption, conflicts of interest, espionage and the giving and receiving of gifts. The Group opposes all forms of oppression and is a supporter of all human rights.
The Group’s entire business is in Europe, wholly in the UK and Republic of Ireland.
An acceptable use policy has been developed for all of the company's assets including but not restricted to computer equipment, email facilities and use of the Internet. This policy is issued to employees with supporting guidance and is designed to protect both the employee and employer.
The Group has the absolute objective of always acting as a fair and reasonable employer. We also acknowledge and are keenly aware of our responsibilities to the many communities we serve; our readers, customers, suppliers, shareholders, other stakeholders and to the environment. Because of our key role in the community, a separate section is incorporated within this report detailing some of the many community orientated activities in which the Group's companies are involved.
Board Responsibility
The Board has delegated the day-to-day responsibility for all matters related to Corporate Social Responsibility and social issues to the Executive Directors. They are assisted by the Company Secretary, who is generally the first point of contact for any issues of this nature.
Specific responsibility for environmental issues has been delegated to the Chief Financial Officer, who also chairs the Group’s Carbon Footprint Taskforce.
Whilst recognising that the practices of recruitment, employment and training are the responsibility of all managers within the Group, responsibility for formulating, updating and ensuring adherence to Group policies and relevant legislation has been delegated to the Director of Human Resources, who is responsible to the Chief Operating Officer.
Each local Managing Director has responsibility within their operation for relationships with customers, suppliers and the community. These relationships are subject to review by the Chief Operating Officer. Certain materials and services are sourced centrally such as newsprint and legal and professional services and these arrangements are subject to review by either the Chief Operating Officer or the Chief Financial Officer, depending on the nature of the supply.
As part of the main Board's review of Corporate Governance at its March 2009 meeting, the Directors also reviewed the Corporate Social Responsibility Policy.
Health & Safety
As discussed in the Business Review, the Group has rigorous Health & Safety management and reporting processes in place. Health & Safety is at the core of our operations, and is a specific item on all business agendas at the local, regional, Group and Board levels. There are Health & Safety Committees in every Group Company and the Chief Operating Officer chairs the Group Health & Safety Committee, which undertakes audit visits, monitors compliance with Group policies and spreads best practice.
With our improved and consistent reporting processes now having been in place for more than 4 years it is possible to report some meaningful statistics and comparisons. Our reporting procedures ensure that every accident, including the most minor laceration or abrasion, is reported, hence the higher percentages recorded for our printing operations. It should, however, be noted that the vast majority of these are not reportable under RIDDOR requirements.
As can be seen in table 1, we continue to make progress across the Group in reducing the number of accidents. There has been a reduction in the number of employees involved in accidents in both our printing and publishing operations when compared to 2007 and overall the percentage of employees involved in accidents reduced to 5.0%. With improved categorisation of accident reporting in 2007, we know that 66% of the total number of accidents recorded relate to slips, trips, falls, manual handling and bumps. The increased focus on these categories from our Health & Safety Committees in 2008 through training and awareness programmes has shown a reduction of 16% from 2007. RIDDOR reportable accidents unfortunately increased but this has been attributed to a better understanding of the reporting requirements. As a number of these resulted in injuries associated with long term absences the working days lost increased when compared to 2007.
Whilst there was an increase in total working days lost in 2008, we are still operating well below the national average.
The Group also has a rolling programme of independent audit visits covering property and Health & Safety risks. These visits are targeted at the locations which have the highest risk profile along with a sample of other sites. Detailed reports and recommendations are produced after each visit which require follow-up and implementation by local management. This process is monitored by the Group Management Board.
Table 1 - Accident Reporting
| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | |
| Average total employees in Group (FTE) | 7,124 | 7,664 | 7,849 |
| Employees involved in accidents | 359 | 409 | 423 |
| - Publishing | 3.9% | 3.8% | 4.5% |
| - Printing | 14.4% | 17.8% | 18.6% |
| - Total | 5.0% | 5.3% | 5.4% |
| Employees with RIDDOR reportable accidents | 44 | 38 | 30 |
| - Publishing | 0.5% | 0.4% | 0.3% |
| - Printing | 1.8% | 1.5% | 1.9% |
| - Total | 0.6% | 0.5% | 0.4% |
| Total working days lost through accidents | 1,197 | 718 | 538 |
Employee Involvement
Employees
In terms of headcount we employ over 7,000 employees in the UK and Republic of Ireland and this section is about how we manage, develop and reward all of our people. Whilst we operate a de-centralised approach, our aims are common – we want to attract, retain and engage the best people in a challenging and supportive culture that drives business performance.
Employment Policies
It is important that all of our managers and employees understand what is expected of them in terms of their behaviour and standards. This is set out in our Value Statements, Personnel Policies & Procedures, Employee Handbook, Codes of Conduct and Contracts of Employment. Our grievance and whistleblowing procedures also allow any employee to report behaviour that is contrary to our policies or is in any way concerning to them.
Employee Representation
All of our employees have the right to freedom of association and, in a number of cases, we recognise trade unions at a subsidiary level in both the UK and in the Republic of Ireland. Recently we have agreed a Constitution for a European Employee Works Council. Employee elections will take place early in 2009 and the first meeting is scheduled for May 2009. Employee Forums already exist at a subsidiary level for the purposes of local communication and consultation.
Diversity
The Group recognises that a diverse workforce adds clear value to our employees, customers, shareholders and the communities we serve. We fully support the principle of equal opportunity for all and oppose all forms of illegal and unfair discrimination. Our Group Diversity Manager and Diversity Co-ordinators meet on a regular basis, with the aim of reviewing our workforce composition and taking positive action to address any imbalance. All of our Personnel Policies & Procedures, practices and training programmes are regularly reviewed to ensure that they fully comply with the equality legislation in both the UK and the Republic of Ireland.
Employee Engagement
Understanding our employees and engaging them in the achievement of our organisation’s objectives is of paramount importance. In 2008 we conducted a confidential Engagement Survey in the UK. The survey allows us to benchmark levels of employee engagement and identify areas for improvement.
Learning & Development
The growth of our people remains a priority and we continue to deliver a wide range of learning and development programmes. In 2008 we delivered 1,200 programmes and in excess of 8,500 training days covering all aspects of our business including Advertising, Editorial, Digital Media, Newspaper Sales, Finance, Health & Safety, IT and HR. In 2008 we invested heavily in editorial programmes in support of our multi-platform publishing strategy.
Identifying, developing and succession planning for leadership talent at all levels will continue to be a priority. In support of this we developed and delivered a wide range of managerial and leadership development programmes.
Workforce Statistics
Our total workforce is represented by 49.7% male and 50.3% female and our age profile is as follows:
Over 60 9.0%
50 – 59 19.4%
40 – 49 23.8%
30 – 39 22.7%
Under 30 25.1%
Reward & Recognition
Our subsidiary businesses have differing pay structures based on the size of the organisation and local market conditions. Progression within these pay structures is based on competence and performance. We also operate bonus schemes for executive and sales staff. Regretfully due to the current economic and trading environment there was no Free Share award in respect of 2008.
Disability Access
As part of our ongoing property and Health & Safety audits we continually review the provisions made at all of our locations to ensure that we do not discriminate, in terms of access, against disabled employees or customers. Solutions have been put in place involving modification, removal, avoidance or circumvention of potential barriers at all of our locations. We also ensure that any refurbishment or upgrading of our premises, where practical, takes into account the need to enhance access for all of our disabled stakeholders. Reflecting the importance of our digital publishing activities, the Group develops its core internet sites to WAI single ‘A’ Standards. All pages are created using XHTML and CSS 2.0; this method provides support for our users accessing our sites via screen readers. All our newspaper sites have a sitemap that enables easy navigation on screen. The Group also supports the “Talking Newspapers” charity as one of its nominated charities. The Group has a Disability Access policy which is included in our Policy and Procedures manual.
Community Involvement
Johnston Press titles over many years have supported, publicised and campaigned on issues at the heart of the communities that we serve. The following is a brief synopsis of just some of the most memorable in 2008.
The Shields Gazette’s Bangla Awaz awards – believed to be the first staged by a newspaper – were a resounding success. Scores of people from the town’s Bangladeshi community turned out for a prize ceremony. The Burnley Express formed a partnership with the Prince of Wales to develop a five year campaign to rejuvenate and regenerate the town. The campaign started with a front page message to readers written by the Prince, who had earlier spent a day touring the town on a fact-finding mission. The paper is now working with the Prince’s Trust on a series of projects.
On the anniversary front the Dewsbury Reporter celebrated its 150th year which culminated in a black tie dinner attended by local celebrities and dignitaries and the Berwick Advertiser celebrated its 200th anniversary, marking the occasion with achievement awards honouring unsung heroes.
A number of Post Offices facing closure resulted in our newspapers launching campaigns to save them.
The Harrogate Advertiser was just one of the titles that successfully campaigned to save this vital facility spearheading a campaign that included a petition, march and public meeting.
Drinkers and MPs raised a toast to the Yorkshire Evening Post as it campaigned to keep Tetley’s beer being brewed in the county. The paper also fronted ‘Let Us Play’ –designed to get improved child play facilities. Retailers and residents thanked the Wetherby News for taking on the Highways Agency over poor signposting for the town. In Bury St Edmunds, the Bury Free Press was at the heart of a campaign to support the opening of an Asda store. The internationally famous Spalding Flower Parade was saved from the axe thanks to a campaign run by sister papers the Lincolnshire Free Press and Spalding Guardian.
The Sunderland Echo launched a campaign to honour servicemen and women fighting abroad. In a similar vein the group’s Falkirk weekly titles combined to highlight Armistice Day and the Scarborough Evening News encouraged businesses including hotels to offer discounts to soldiers. The News Letter in Belfast also ran a similar campaign which resulted in an event attended by 30,000 people. At Portsmouth, the News ran a Save Our Ships campaign designed to maintain the strength of the Royal Navy.
A virtual candle of remembrance was launched on the Limerick Leader website following the murder of a rugby player – with more than 13,500 candles being lit.
There were also numerous campaigns linked to environmental issues. The Scotsman launched a major ‘Let’s Go Green Together’ initiative with the Scottish Government to encourage people to be more environmentally aware. It also campaigned against the persecution of birds of prey.A special green edition of the Wakefield Express was produced, designed to raise awareness of environmental issues and the second Sheffield Telegraph environmental awards dinner raised £15,600. Pledge to the Planet saw the Lancashire Evening Post invite primary schools to go green for the day. The event was featured in film online and in a special print supplement. A similar campaign in Blackpool also involved the Gazette in encouraging people to ditch expensive bottled water in favour of the tap variety. Schools were issued with 2,000 life-time water bottles for children
to use.
In Harrogate, the Advertiser supported the town’s first symbolic Car Free Day encouraging the public to car share and use public transport. Traffic on one main route was down 10% on the day and it is likely the event will be held again. The Halifax Courier ran community and environment awards, honouring the district’s green champions. The West Sussex Gazette ran a poster scheme for children.
Health issues were also high on the agenda for campaigns. A large number of our titles ran supplements to mark 60 years of the NHS. Scotland on Sunday was at the forefront of a campaign to have organ donor legislation changed. At Sheffield, The Star launched a print and online campaign to encourage people to become transplant donors resulting in 30,000 people signing up. The paper also won praise for its Boxing against Bullying campaign, which recruited star boxers to encourage youngsters to take up the sport as an anti-dote to bullying. At Bridlington, the Free Press fought hospital cuts and took a 38,000 signature petition to Downing Street as well as helping to organise a protest march by 6,000 people. There was a special award for the Eastbourne Herald, presented with a certificate to acknowledge its role in saving maternity services at the town’s hospital. The Edinburgh Evening News fought to retain children’s cancer services and an investigation by the paper into food standards at schools led to the reinstatement of services. A Live in Hope campaign spearheaded by the Lancashire Evening Post concluded, having raised £1.65m for a purpose-built refuge for victims of domestic violence.
Major awards won in 2008 included:
Scottish Newspaper Society and Newspaper Society
| Yorkshire Post Newspapers | Overall feature advertising award |
| Yorkshire Post Newspapers | Property Supplement |
| Falkirk Herald | Scottish weekly newspaper of the year |
| Southern Reporter | Scottish weekly paid-for newspaper of the year |
| Scotsman | Client Sponsorship package |
| Scotland on Sunday | Entertainment and leisure supplement |
| Lancashire Publications | Weekly supplement of the year |
| Sussex Newspapers | Best niche publication |
Yorkshire Press Awards
| Harrogate Advertiser | Weekly newspaper of the year |
| Dewsbury Reporter | Breaking news story of the year (Shannon Matthews coverage) |
| Tom Hay, Harrogate Advertiser | Leader writer |
| Greg Wright, Yorkshire Post | Business writer |
| John Edwards, Bridlington Free press | Weekly reporter |
| Nick Ahad, Yorkshire Post | Daily feature writer |
| Sophie Hazan, Yorkshire Evening Post | Daily reporter of the year |
| Yorkshire Evening Post | Front page of the year |
| Kate Wobschall, Dewsbury Reporter | Headline writer |
| Kate Mason, Deborah Winn, Doncaster Free Press | Joint feature writer of the year |
Other Awards
| Richard Elias, Scotland on Sunday | Scottish Newspaper Society journalist of the year |
| Tom English, Scotland on Sunday | Scottish sports writer of the year |
| Catherine Deveney, Scotland on Sunday | Scottish feature writer of the year |
| Ian Rutherford | First Scotrail press photographer of the year |
| Donald MacLeod | First Scotrail feature photographer of the year |
| William Lyons | Louis Roederer UK regional wine writer of the year |
| Anthony Sutton, Dirt Bike Rider | Federation Internationale De Motorsyclisme Motocross journalist of the year |
| Janis Blower, Shields Gazette | Graham Stanton Lifetime achievement award |
| Lancashire Evening Post | How Do media awards website of the year |
| Steve Simpson, Blackpool Gazette | Coral Racing naps tipster |
| Colin Drury, Halifax Courier | Press Gazette columnist of the year |
| Matt Jackson, Portsmouth News | EDF south print journalist |
| Simon Toft, Portsmouth News | EDF south feature writer |
| Alan Cooper, Portsmouth News | EDF south designer |
| Portsmouth News | EDF south front page of the year |
| Jonathan Jurejko, Doncaster Free Press | NCTJ trainee sports reporter of the year |
| Patricia Feehily, Limerick Leader | Mid-West media journalist of the year |
| Donnie Macinnes | After 40 years at The Stornoway Gazette won the Baron Trophy recognising lifetime achievement in journalism in the Highlands & Islands |
Fundraising
Our titles again spearheaded major fund raising efforts. Cancer charities in particular have benefited.
An incredible £3m was raised by Yorkshire Evening Post readers for a cancer care centre in Leeds. And it is hoped that £1m will be raised by the Leeds 10k run in memory of cancer campaigner Jane Tomlinson, thanks to massive support from the Yorkshire Post. Help Brave Ben was the name of the Doncaster Free Press campaign that raised £25,000 in less than six months to buy a specially adapted car for ex-paratrooper Ben Parkinson from the town who lost his legs in an Afghanistan landmine explosion. Another appeal by the paper to buy a new scanner for Doncaster Royal Infirmary stands at £200,000.
The 2008 Burnley Race for Life, supported by the Express, raised more than £90,000 for cancer research. Thousands of Portsmouth soccer fans dressed in Pompey colours to support two blue days organised by the News to raise £80,000 for charity in memory of a young fan who died of cancer. A hospital breast care appeal reached its £200,000 target thanks to support from the Worksop Guardian. The Teenage Cancer Trust in Edinburgh hit a £150,000 target after support from Evening News readers. On the Isle of Man our newspapers helped raise £90,000 for a cancer victim to receive treatment in France. A smaller scale fundraising effort raised £23,000 for an Age Concern bus on the island.
A Bring £1 to work day campaign by the Melton Times raised £26,000 for an air ambulance and The Northants Evening Telegraph raised £20,000 for its local air ambulance – enough to keep the helicopter in the air for five days. An appeal for a hydro-pool for children with special needs hit its target of £300,000 thanks to support from the Suffolk Free Press and its readers. An appeal backed by the Lynn News for a new lifeboat at Hunstanton also reached its £130,000 target.
The Bourne Local may only be a small title with a circulation of 3,600 – but it has a big heart raising an incredible £30,000 in ten weeks to support twins with a life-threatening illness. Chichester Observer reporter
Clare Hawkin took part in a trek to the base camp of Everest helping the Dreams Come True charity to raise £50,000. A boy, aged four, suffering a rare chest condition received treatment in America thanks to a Wigan Reporter appeal. Its sister title, the Wigan Evening Post, campaigned for a two-year-old girl to get pioneering treatment for cystic fibrosis, raising £200,000. In a similar campaign the Whitby Gazette raised £14,500 for a sufferer.
The Hartlepool Mail’s Lifeline appeal raised £15,000 for a hospital specialist ventilator. A community nurse will be on her rounds in Northamptonshire thanks to a £100,000 campaign involving the British Heart Foundation and the Chronicle & Echo. Another £100,000 was raised in the county by the Evening Telegraph to provide cardiac care facilities.
The Blackpool Gazette raised £500,000 for vital children’s hospital scanning facilities in the town. The paper’s Presents of Mind appeal, which invited readers to donate unwanted Christmas gifts to aid a local hospice, gave the charity a £6,000 boost. An appeal to raise cash for a bereavement counsellor reached its £35,000 target, thanks to the Grantham Journal.
Mansfield Chad readers continued to support the paper’s long-running Guide Dogs for the Blind appeal with money being collected for their 279th dog. Readers of the Northumberland Gazette dressed in Santa outfits for a Santa Saunter around Alnwick, raising £2,000 for local charities.
Work is now reaching fruition on the £3.2m scheme, backed by the Clitheroe Advertiser & Times, to turn the Castle Museum into a 21st century visitor attraction. Hastings Observer readers raised £15,000 for charity through an achievers awards scheme. And finally in Harrogate £100,000 was raised to fund an extension at a school for the blind, with another £25,000 being collected for an orphanage in Malawi.
In summary, during the calendar year 2008 the Group has facilitated fund raising campaigns that have raised £3.6 million, have given free space to community or environmental campaigns to the value of £800,000 and have given discounts to charity advertisers of £200,000.
News Gathering
On the news front, our titles broke many major news stories during the year, some of the most notable are summarised below.
Gerri Peev, The Scotsman’s political reporter, broke the story which forced Samantha Power, a key Obama aide, to resign after she denounced Hillary Clinton in an unguarded moment. The Northants Evening Telegraph uncovered the fact that a Croatian wanted for war crimes was living in Corby. He was arrested on a visit to Serbia and now faces a court hearing. People from all over the world visited the Isle of Man website for detailed coverage of the collapse of the Kaupthing Singer and Friedlander Bank.
In a sign of changed times the Derry Journal reported how a man on holiday from England sat with his friends having a drink in the Bogside Inn – yards from where, 35 years earlier, he became the first British soldier to be shot in the city during the troubles. The Grantham Journal website was used to show exclusive CCTV footage of two men attacking a postmaster with samurai swords. An earthquake with its epicentre in Market Rasen was heavily accessed on the town paper’s website.
LEP Live saw the Preston newspaper becoming the first in the UK to stream a live outside broadcast debating community issues.
The story about RAF Wittering personnel being banned from wearing uniforms in Peterborough was revealed by the Evening Telegraph. Delays in the Government’s replacement programme for aircraft carriers were revealed by the Portsmouth News.
A super-human effort by Morpeth Herald staff resulted in extensive coverage and essential community information being provided online during the September Northumberland floods. In August a special edition of the Limerick Leader rallied behind the residents of Newcastle West, one of Limerick’s biggest county towns, after it was devastated by flooding.
One of the most unusual stories was covered by the Worthing Herald after 2,000 tons of wood was washed ashore on to beaches from a stricken cargo vessel. Thousands of visitors watched the story unfold in print
and online.
The revelation that child deaths in Doncaster were at a worrying high was first carried by the Doncaster Free Press. The Government had a re-think on the use of green belt land for eco-towns after a campaigning story in one of the South Yorkshire Community Newsletters and in Milton Keynes journalist Sally Murrer became a standard bearer for press freedom being sensationally cleared by a judge after getting caught up in a case involving a police officer leaking information. The judge ruled that the police bugging of her conversations with the police officer was in breach of the Human Rights Act.
Customer Services
It is Group policy to provide the highest standard of service to all of our customers. Each operating company has staff appointed to respond to all customer enquiries. There are strict procedures for resolving customer complaints or queries regarding service and these are carefully monitored by management. Local management in each operation are responsible for ensuring that their companies and all their employees comply with the requirements of all customer and competition related legislation. It is Group policy that the interests of Johnston Press only ever require strict compliance and no one in the Group has authority to give any order or direction that would result in a violation of this policy. To monitor this and for training purposes, the Group undertakes mystery shopping exercises where independent organisations interact with our business to provide feedback on our processes and procedures.
The Group has also developed a series of customer service related metrics which are in place across the organisation and subject to review by the Executive Directors at the twice yearly business reviews undertaken with every operation. The improvement of these metrics forms part of Executives’ KPIs for bonus purposes. We have also commissioned independent audits of our customer services in an effort to drive continual improvement. The Group Sales Charter introduced in 2004 has become enshrined in our operations to ensure that our customers and advertisers are always dealt with in a fair and equitable manner and our terms of trade are published in the Group's newspapers as well as being linked to all of the Group’s websites. Equal attention is paid to the service that we provide to our readers and viewers with each editor directly responsible for any complaints. The Editorial Review Group, a body of senior Group editors, also meets regularly to discuss editorial policy and issues related to content. The Group also conforms to the Press Complaints Commission Code of Practice.
Environmental
The Group acknowledges that the protection of the environment is one of its key corporate responsibilities.
We aim to comply with all relevant regulations and see the identification, management and control of environmental risks as being an implicit requirement for adherence to the Corporate Governance Combined Code.
Back in 2002, a scoring methodology and audit programme was developed by independent environmental risk consultants to facilitate the ongoing monitoring and control of our policies and procedures. Extensive training was carried out and a rolling programme of internal audits of environmental impacts and risks was introduced. Additionally audits by external independent consultants have continued in order to verify the findings of these internal reviews.
Table 2 - Consumption of energy
| 2008 | 2007 | % | 2006 | % | |
| Electricity | |||||
| - kWh | 56,651,808 | 60,789,592 | (6.8) | 59,556,816 | 2.1 |
| - print centres kWh/tonne | 178.5 | 184.2 | (3.1) | 208.6 | (11.7) |
| Gas | |||||
| - kWh | 29,130,352 | 31,258,224 | (6.8) | 30,924,562 | 1.1 |
| - print centres kWh/tonne | 66.7 | 77.5 | (13.9) | 95.6 | (18.9) |
| Water | |||||
| - m3 | 110,370 | 122,456* | (9.9) | 121,453 | 0.8 |
| - print centres m3/tonne | 0.37 | 0.42 | (11.9) | 0.55 | (23.6) |
* Prior periods adjusted to correct for actual consumption
Detailed reports are produced after each visit and the implementation of all recommendations is monitored by management.
The Group continues to benefit from its investment in more energy efficient equipment as well as the time and effort put into the monitoring and control of energy consumption. The equipment introduced for this control has enabled the Group to continue to benefit from rebates against the Climate Change Levy Tax as well as targeting sites where base load consumption levels are not showing required reductions and subjecting them to detailed audits.
In terms of energy management, 2008 saw a continuation of local efforts initiated in 2007 through the employee forums. More information is included under Carbon Footprint on page 26.
Over the period of 2005 and early 2006 the Group grew significantly by acquisition and therefore the total energy consumption of the Group increased. However, as the last of the significant acquisitions took place on 4 January 2006 we can make direct comparisons from 2006 to 2008. Table 2 below summarises the consumption of energy.
The Group’s total electricity consumption fell by 6.8% in the year. The throughput in our print centres was only down by 0.7% and their consumption per tonne of newsprint fell by 3.1%. The majority of the reduction, some 2,937,842 kWh, is down to the efforts in our many publishing centres and the increased awareness of energy management across the business championed by the Carbon Footprint Taskforce and our Employee Forums. The reduction in the print centres continues to be driven by more titles being printed on the modern triple width presses which are more efficient. Gas consumption was down by 6.8% in total with almost all of the reduction coming from improvements in our print centres. We have had a rolling programme inspecting boilers, making sure they are fit for purpose, time controlled and sized correctly. This is now delivering tangible benefits. We aim to continue this programme as appropriate in the publishing centres.
The water consumption for the Group decreased by around 10% in the year. The 2007 numbers have had to be restated given some corrected billing from our suppliers relating to Q4 2007. We have not seen the size of decrease that we had hoped for in this area as the system to recycle the water used for blanket washing at Portsmouth Press is not yet fully operational. However, that being said, the drop per tonne of throughput in the print centres of 11.9% is due to a greater percentage of our throughput going through the more efficient Dinnington and Portsmouth presses.
As stated in the 2007 Annual Report, the Group has achieved the target originally set in 2003 for an overall reduction of 7% in its energy consumption by 2010. After this was achieved by the end of 2006, a new target was established of a further 10% reduction between 2007 and 2010. In 2008 we have consumed 5.2% less kWh of energy than in 2006 and are just over half way to this target. Budgets have been set for 2009 encompassing further year-on-year improvements.
We have also continued to make progress on reducing the Group’s car and van fleet. Total number of vehicles reduced by 12.0% in the year, although this was principally driven by the reduction in headcount. The overall CO2 rating of the fleet came down by 12.3% as any new vehicles purchased had lower ratings than those vehicles they replaced. With limited capital expenditure in the year, the average CO2 rating per vehicle only dropped marginally. Full details are shown in table 3.
Table 3 - Motor Vehicle data
| 2008 | 2007 | % | 2006 | % | 2005* | % | 2004 | % | |
| Total Fleet (No of vehicles) | 1,811 | 2,057 | (12.0) | 2,109 | (2.5) | 1,960 | 7.6 | 1,852 | 5.8 |
| Total Fleet CO2 rating | 296,425 | 338,154 | (12.3) | 355,145 | (4.8) | 337,726 | 5.2 | 325,237 | 3.8 |
| Average CO2 rating | 164 | 164 | (0.7) | 168 | (2.4) | 172 | (2.3) | 176 | (2.3) |
* Adjusted to include acquisitions completed in December 2005
New Initiatives
The new presses at Dinnington and Portsmouth reached optimum output levels in 2008. This allowed the Group to migrate more volume from less efficient machinery and decommission two older presses in the year. One of the Groups more efficient presses was relocated to its operation in Northern Ireland and was successfully commissioned in a new purpose built press hall. Again this allowed the Group’s titles in this market to move from less efficient older machinery. This will hopefully lead to a reduction in paper usage of 8% as a result of this move.
The Group’s Carbon Footprint initiatives to reduce energy costs through investment in new technologies continued in 2008. These included, voltage reduction equipment, variable speed compressors, low energy lighting schemes, motion sensor installations and water restrictors. Significant success was also gained in the Group’s drive to communicate the importance of energy conservation with its entire staff. Campaigns including posters, meetings and forums have heightened the awareness of energy management across the Group.
Newsprint
Since 1991 the industry, through the Newspaper Society, has agreed targets with the Government on the recycled content of British newspapers. The target for the year 2000 was 40.0% and has been raised each year since. The industry has consistently surpassed these targets and currently 79.0% of all newsprint in the UK comes from recycled paper. This figure has increased annually consistent with the recycling of newsprint.
The average recycled content of standard newsprint bought by Johnston Press is 80%, slightly ahead of the government target, helped by the closure of the Northampton press during 2008 which predominantly used virgin paper due to its age and associated runability issues.
Newspapers cannot be recycled indefinitely due to the process requiring some virgin fibre to maintain paper strength. All virgin fibre comes from an environmentally sound, renewable resource which is monitored and certificated, mainly softwood coniferous forests, where, for every tree cut down, two or more are planted. Newspapers are not responsible for rainforest devastation as the hardwoods from such forests are not used for newsprint manufacture.
Emissions to Air
The Group’s only Heatset press located at Caledonian Offset maintains its operation well within the emissions requirements as stated in the Pollution Prevention and Control Act 1999 - Pollution Prevention and Control (Scotland) Regulations 2000. The Katec Oxidiser unit had 99.6% destruction (removal) efficiency in 2008 and continues to work effectively, removing pollutants from the ink drying process. The process was inspected by SEPA in 2008 and passed successfully.
In 2008, Caledonian Offset introduced a non volatile organic compound blanket wash; this was acknowledged by SEPA to be environmentally proactive. There has been no requirement to go to a bypass condition during 2008.
Waste
In 2008 the Group continued to move its titles to short cut-off newer presses, reducing paper usage and waste generation. Ink optimisation and pre-setting is now standard across the printing operation which reduced the make-ready waste across the Groups’ titles.
All paper and non-paper waste streams are segregated and audited separately. A new agreement was reached in the year to extend the Group’s relationship with its two main waste partners. The Group remains committed to ensure that its recycled newsprint goes into the production of new newsprint.
Carbon Footprint
As reported last year the Group established its Carbon Footprint Taskforce under the Chairmanship of Stuart Paterson, our Chief Financial Officer. This taskforce developed the Group’s environmental policy and is responsible for co-ordinating the Group’s activities in this area. The Group’s environmental policy is as follows:
- We will ensure that every aspect of our activities is conducted in accordance with sound environmental practices. We will achieve this by:
- Minimising the consumption of natural resources and energy, whilst consuming material goods in moderation. All newsprint consumed in the printing of our newspapers will either be from recycled sources or from sustainable managed forests. The objective is to have at least 75% of our consumption from recycled sources.
- Pursuing our Energy Policy in which, as stated earlier, our original aim was to reduce our consumption of energy on a like-for-like basis by 7% between 2003 and 2010. Between 2003 and 2006 we achieved an 18% reduction in terms of kWh and the Group is now seeking to reduce by a further 10% over 2007 to 2010.
- Reducing the creation of waste by the adoption of improved operating practices and by the recycling of materials whenever practical.
- Ensuring all waste and effluent is disposed of in a safe and responsible manner.
- Ensuring all emissions to air comply with relevant current and planned legislation and that at least 99.5% of all Volatile Organic Compounds are removed during the process.
- Complying with all environmental legislation.
Johnston Press aims to foster among its employees, suppliers, customers, shareholders, other stakeholders and communities local to its operations an understanding of environmental issues in the context of its business. Our collective task is to ensure that we continually improve the environmental impact of our activities.
By this policy Johnston Press recognises its responsibility towards the protection of the environment, and issues this statement as a commitment of both management and employees to minimising the environmental impact of its operations.
Many of the Carbon Footprint Taskforce initiatives, which are designed to reduce our impact on the environment, are implemented through the Employee Forums which operate at all of our publishing centres. Reducing the environmental impact of our operations has been an initiative that has been embraced by the forums and has resulted in many local projects.
The aims of the Carbon Footprint Taskforce are as follows:
- Establish Group policy and objectives
- Promote the general aims of “reduce, reuse, recycle”
- Work through the established Employee Forums
- Co-ordinate Group wide initiatives
- Agree under the auspices of the Newspaper Society a standard method of measuring the Carbon Footprint (Scope 2) and seek to reduce this (base year 2006) by 25% over the next 5 years
- Run an annual Group Environmental Award
The second annual Group wide survey of every publishing and printing centre was carried out towards the end of 2008. The results were particularly encouraging with every one of the 18 measures surveyed showing improvement over 2007. Highlights include 97% of our offices supplying details of local energy saving initiatives, 89% of our offices having local recycling initiatives, 86% of our offices having a Carbon Footprint Champion and 92% having carbon footprint on the agenda at every Employee Forum meeting.
The achievements of the Taskforce in 2008 were as follows:
- A Group-wide survey of every publishing and printing centre has been carried out to determine current projects, level of engagement and status
- Promoted and issued case studies to promote the use of central resource rather than desktop printersPurchased and distributed over 1,000 Intelliplugs to ensure all computer peripherals are powered down in line with PCs
- Increased recycling of used toner or printer cartridges with Macmillan Cancer Care
- Established a single source supplier for recycling computer equipment
- Funded and promoted pilot schemes including PIR lighting, fluorescent tube removal or upgrade, old boiler replacement, dry urinals and the use of smaller vans
- Awarded the Group’s first annual Carbon Footprint Award to Northeast Press
In terms of our involvement with the community, 86% of our publishing centres have actively promoted “green” issues in their newspapers and 58% have also done this on their websites. In fact, a third of our titles now run a regular column to support these initiatives. Looking towards 2009, almost 80% of our titles already have editorial campaigns planned and more than three quarters have advertising initiatives linked to these.
As noted above, the Group has worked in partnership with Dell, its principal supplier of IT equipment, to develop a disposal channel for redundant IT equipment. During 2008, over 1,600 end-of-life items were gathered from divisional centres and sent to Dell regional collection points, minimising the environmental and transportation impact. Once collected and audited, Dell works with developing countries to provide the re-purposed computer systems to schools and emerging industry, where there is a shortage of such hardware. Anything with no value is broken down into its constituent parts and re-used in industry to avoid disposal into landfill, ensuring total compliance with all WEEE regulations and waste legislation.
Shareholders
Members of the Board (Executive and Non-Executive) have met a number of shareholders during the past year to discuss Corporate Social Responsibility matters and to address any questions raised by them.