Modern Slavery Statement

Organisation

This statement applies to GrandirUK (The Childcare Corporation), referred to in this statement as ‘GrandirUK’.

GrandirUK is part of the Grandir Group, a leading provider of high-quality childcare operating more than 650 centres across Europe and North America, supported by a dedicated team of 10,000 educators.

Grandir serves more than 32,000 families across France, England, Germany, Canada and the USA.

GrandirUK has been providing childcare and early years education to children and families across the UK since 1998.

We operate from a central Support Office in Basingstoke, alongside nursery settings across the UK. Our settings have a combined operating capacity of more than 5,000 children and we employ more than 1,500 people.

Our CEO is supported by the Leadership Team, who oversee the strategic development of the organisation. Regional Managers, reporting to the Director of Operations, are responsible for nursery clusters across the UK, with each nursery led by a Nursery Manager and their team.

Our nurseries are also supported by specialist teams across areas including Marketing and Communications, Human Resources, Finance, Health and Safety, Facilities, Customer Services, and Learning and Development.

The labour supplied to GrandirUK in the course of its operations is carried out across regions within the United Kingdom.

What we mean by modern slavery

GrandirUK considers modern slavery to include:

• Human trafficking
• Forced or compulsory labour, including through mental or physical threat
• Being owned or controlled by an employer through mental or physical abuse or the threat of abuse
• Being dehumanised, treated as a commodity or bought or sold as property
• Being physically constrained or having restrictions placed on freedom of movement

Our commitment

GrandirUK recognises its responsibilities in relation to tackling modern slavery and is committed to complying with the provisions of the Modern Slavery Act 2015.

We understand that this requires an ongoing review of both our internal employment practices and our supply chains.

GrandirUK does not knowingly enter into business with any organisation, in the UK or overseas, that supports or is involved in slavery, servitude, forced or compulsory labour or human trafficking.

No labour provided to GrandirUK in the delivery of our services is obtained through slavery or human trafficking. We adhere to the minimum standards required in relation to our responsibilities under relevant UK employment legislation.

Our supply chains

To support the operation of our nurseries and wider organisation, our main supply chains include the provision of:

• Food and milk supplies
• Facilities and maintenance
• Furniture, fixtures and fittings
• Toys and resources
• Clothing
• Energy and utilities
• Vehicles and transport
• Commercial equipment
• Appliances
• Other goods and services sourced from suppliers in the UK and internationally

We recognise that some of our first-tier suppliers are intermediary traders and may therefore have further contractual relationships with suppliers further down the supply chain.

Understanding our risks

We recognise that our main potential exposure to slavery and human trafficking exists within our procurement supply chains, particularly where goods or labour may originate from countries where protection against breaches of human rights is more limited.

Overall, GrandirUK considers its exposure to slavery and human trafficking to be relatively limited. However, we continue to take steps to help ensure that these practices do not take place within our organisation or the organisations that supply goods and services to us.

Due diligence and the steps we take

GrandirUK carries out due diligence processes to help ensure that slavery and human trafficking do not take place within our organisation or supply chains. This includes reviewing the controls of our suppliers.

To our knowledge, GrandirUK has not conducted business with an organisation found to have been involved in modern slavery.

In accordance with Section 54(4) of the Modern Slavery Act 2015, we take the following steps to help prevent modern slavery:

• Review supplier contracts to include termination powers where a supplier is, or is suspected to be, involved in modern slavery
• Identify measures in place and assess potential risks within our supply chains
• Undertake impact assessments of our services in relation to potential instances of slavery
• Create action plans to address risks relating to modern slavery
• Maintain a zero-tolerance approach to modern slavery
• Provide modern slavery training to employees through an online platform as part of induction and annually thereafter

Measuring our approach

GrandirUK uses key performance indicators to measure the effectiveness of our approach to preventing modern slavery within our organisation and supply chains.

These include:

• Recruitment policies that ensure employees establish their right to work in the UK and satisfy minimum age requirements
• Internal Human Resources policies that help ensure working practices are monitored for ongoing compliance with current legislation
• Quarterly training reports
• The number of incidents relating to modern slavery identified
• The number of speak-up incidents relating to modern slavery reported
• The number of incidents relating to modern slavery addressed
• Our Supplier Code of Conduct
• Procurement due diligence

Our policies

We are committed to helping ensure that modern slavery and human trafficking have no place within our supply chains or any part of our organisation.

Our Anti-Slavery and Human Trafficking Policy reflects our commitment to acting ethically and with integrity in our business relationships and to implementing and enforcing appropriate systems and controls to help prevent slavery and human trafficking within our supply chains.

We expect everyone working for or on behalf of GrandirUK to comply with this policy. This includes employees at all levels, directors, officers, agency workers, seconded workers, volunteers, interns, agents, contractors, external consultants, third-party representatives and business partners.

We have a disciplinary procedure in place for employees who fail to comply with our policies and expected standards.

Our wider policies and procedures supporting our approach include:

• Modern Slavery Policy
• Corporate Social Responsibility Policy
• Supplier Code of Conduct
• Safer Recruitment Policy
• Whistleblowing Policy
• Equality and Diversity Policy

Training and awareness

Modern slavery training is provided to employees through our online training platform as part of their induction and on an annual basis.

This training supports awareness of modern slavery and helps our people understand the importance of identifying and raising potential concerns.

Slavery Compliance Officer

GrandirUK has appointed a Slavery Compliance Officer, to whom concerns regarding modern slavery can be addressed.

The Slavery Compliance Officer is responsible for taking appropriate action in relation to concerns raised and GrandirUK's obligations regarding modern slavery.

Approval

This statement is made pursuant to Section 54(1) of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 and will be reviewed for each financial year.

This statement was approved by our CEO and Directors.