OVO GROUP LTD modern slavery statement summary (2022)

Organisation address
1 Rivergate,
Temple Quay,
Bristol,
BS1 6ED

We asked the organisation a series of questions about its modern slavery statement. Its answers are published on this page as a statement summary.

This statement provides information for all 6 recommended areas

What is a modern slavery statement?
UK law requires certain organisations to publish an annual modern slavery statement on their website, setting out the steps they are taking to address modern slavery risks in their operations and supply chains. Read more in the government guidance on publishing modern slavery statements.
Link to full statement
Go to full modern slavery statement on organisation’s website

PDF version of the statement (optional)

There is no PDF version of this statement.

PDF statements were first introduced to the registry for the 2023 statement year.

About this statement summary

All answers relate to the financial year covered by the statement. The organisation is responsible for all the information it provided. Some of our questions are optional, so organisations may not have answered all of them. The statement summary does not replace the full modern slavery statement – below we provide a link to the full statement on the organisation’s website.

Contents

Organisations covered by the statement

OVO GROUP LTD modern slavery statement for 2022 is a group statement covering 10 organisations. See the full list of organisations covered by this statement

Statement period and sign-off details

The statement covers the following period:
1 January 2021 to 31 December 2021

The statement was signed off by:
Raman Bhatia (CEO, OVO Energy)

It was approved by the board (or equivalent management body) on:
16 June 2022

Recommended areas covered by the statement

Government guidance encourages organisations to cover a range of areas in their modern slavery statements, setting out the steps they’re taking to address modern slavery risks in their operations and supply chains. Read about the recommended areas in the statutory guidance.

We asked the organisation to tell us which areas its statement covers.

Areas recommended by government guidance Organisation’s response
The organisation’s structure, business and supply chains Covered
Policies Covered
Risk assessment Covered
Due diligence (steps to address risk) Covered
Training about modern slavery Covered
Goals and key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure the effectiveness of the organisation's actions and progress over time Covered

The organisation’s sectors and turnover

Sectors

The organisation operates in the following sectors:

  • Utilities: gas, water and electricity

Turnover

Its turnover in the financial accounting year of this statement was:

Over £500 million

If the organisation is a public body, this amount is based on the organisation’s budget for the year of the statement.
What does 'turnover' refer to in group statements?
If this is a group statement, this includes the total turnover for all the organisations covered by the statement.

Number of years producing statements

The organisation has been producing modern slavery statements for the following number of years:
1 to 5 years
How does this work for group statements?
If the statement is for a group of organisations, this answer applies to the organisation with the longest history of producing statements.

Policies (optional)

We asked the organisation whether its policies include the following provisions in relation to its domestic and international supply chains, as well as its own operations.
Policy provisions we asked about Organisation’s response
Freedom of workers to terminate employment Included
Freedom of movement Included
Freedom of association Included
Prohibits any threat of violence, harassment and intimidation Included
Prohibits the use of worker-paid recruitment fees Not included
Prohibits compulsory overtime Included
Prohibits child labour Included
Prohibits discrimination Included
Prohibits confiscation of workers' original identification documents Not included
Provides access to remedy, compensation and justice for victims of modern slavery Not included
Other
-

Training (optional)

We asked the organisation whether it provided training on modern slavery, and who it was for.
What counts as training?
We explained that by ‘training’ we meant anything designed to increase knowledge and skills around identifying, addressing or preventing modern slavery risks. This could range from formal training courses to broader awareness-raising activities such as workshops or webinars.
We asked who the training was for Organisation’s response
Your whole organisation No
Your front line staff No
Human resources Yes
Executive-level staff No
Procurement staff Yes
Your suppliers No
The wider community No
Other
Sustainability staff

Monitoring working conditions (optional)

Engaging with others

We asked the organisation to tell us who it engaged with to help monitor working conditions across its operations and supply chains.
We asked who the organisation engaged with Organisation’s response
Your suppliers Yes
Trade unions or worker representative groups Yes
Civil society organisations Yes
Professional auditors No
Workers within your organisation No
Workers within your supply chain Yes
Central or local government No
Law enforcement, such as police, GLAA and other local labour market inspectorates No
Businesses in your industry or sector Yes

Social audits

We asked the organisation to tell us about any social audits it used to look for signs of modern slavery.
What are social audits?
A social audit is a review of an organisation’s working practices from the point of view of social responsibility, and should include an evaluation of working conditions in the organisation’s operations and supply chains. By their nature, audits of supplier workplaces represent a snapshot in time.
Social audits we asked about Organisation’s response
Audit conducted by your staff No
Third party audit arranged by your organisation No
Audit conducted by your supplier’s staff No
Third party audit arranged by your supplier Yes
Announced audit No
Unannounced audit No

Grievance mechanisms

We asked the organisation how workers in its operations or supply chains could raise concerns or make complaints.
We asked if workers could raise concerns this way Organisation’s response
Using anonymous whistleblowing services, such as a helpline or mobile phone app Yes
Through trade unions or other worker representative groups Yes

Other ways of monitoring working conditions

We asked the organisation whether it had any other ways of monitoring working conditions across its operations and supply chains:
Organisation’s response
The organisation did not answer this question.

Modern slavery risks (optional)

Warning Identifying modern slavery risks is a vital step towards eradicating it. The government encourages organisations to be as open and transparent as possible, to improve understanding, collaboration and best practice around tackling this worldwide problem.
We asked the organisation to describe up to 3 priority risks it focused on during the period of the statement, including details of the affected workers, the activity involved, and the location.

Priority risks for this organisation (1 of 3)

Workers in the upward supply chain of electrical equipment
Questions we asked about this risk Organisation’s response
Where it was most likely to occur Organisation’s response: Within your supply chains.
  • Tier 2 suppliers
    Provide products and services to your organisation via your Tier 1 suppliers.
  • Tier 3 suppliers and below
    Provide products and services to your organisation via your Tier 2 suppliers or the next higher level in the chain.
Who was it most likely to affect Organisation’s response:
  • Women
  • Migrants
  • Refugees
  • Children
In which country Organisation’s response: Congo
Actions or plans to address this risk Organisation’s response: OVO has a sustainable procurement process which new suppliers go through (if applicable) to assess and manage the risk of modern slavery. This is done through a questionnaire issued to the top suppliers and suppliers that operate in OVO’s highest risk goods and service categories or regions. OVO also requires new suppliers to sign up to our Supplier Code of Conduct, which outlines the minimum standards suppliers are expected to uphold, including with respect to human rights and modern slavery.

Priority risks for this organisation (2 of 3)

Workers in outsourced operations in high risk regions
Questions we asked about this risk Organisation’s response
Where it was most likely to occur Organisation’s response: Within your supply chains.
  • Tier 1 suppliers
    Provide their products and services directly to your organisation.
Who was it most likely to affect Organisation’s response:
  • Women
  • Migrants
  • Refugees
  • Children
In which country Organisation’s response: South Africa
Actions or plans to address this risk Organisation’s response: OVO has a sustainable procurement approach for new suppliers to assess and manage the risk of modern slavery. This is done through a questionnaire issued to the top suppliers and suppliers that operate in OVO’s highest risk goods and service categories or regions. The supplier contract contains express obligations on the supplier to pay a fair wage, employ over 18s and comply with modern slavery legislation. Our counter party is a large UK based organisation.

Priority risks for this organisation (3 of 3)

Workers in outsourced operations in high risk industries
Questions we asked about this risk Organisation’s response
Where it was most likely to occur Organisation’s response: Within your supply chains.
  • Tier 2 suppliers
    Provide products and services to your organisation via your Tier 1 suppliers.
  • Tier 3 suppliers and below
    Provide products and services to your organisation via your Tier 2 suppliers or the next higher level in the chain.
Who was it most likely to affect Organisation’s response:
  • Women
  • Migrants
  • Refugees
  • Children
In which country Organisation’s response:
  • Congo (Democratic Republic)
  • China
Actions or plans to address this risk Organisation’s response: OVO has a sustainable procurement approach for new suppliers to assess and manage the risk of modern slavery. This is done through a questionnaire issued to the top suppliers and suppliers that operate in OVO’s highest risk goods and service categories or regions. OVO also engages with suppliers who have flagged potential risks in their supply chain to understand what mitigating actions they're taking. Suppliers sign our Supplier Code of Conduct which includes modern slavery legislation.

Indicators of forced labour (optional)

We asked the organisation whether its statement refers to finding any International Labour Organization (ILO) indicators of forced labour.
What are ILO indicators of forced labour?
The International Labour Organization (ILO) has produced a list of the most common signs of forced labour. They’re based on the definition of forced labour as ‘all work or service which is extracted from any person under the menace of any penalty and for which the said person has not offered himself voluntarily.’ More details and guidance are available on the ILO website, and in their publication ILO indicators of forced labour
Organisation’s response
The organisation told us its statement does not refer to finding any International Labour Organization (ILO) indicators of forced labour.

Demonstrating progress (optional)

We asked the organisation how its statement demonstrates progress over time in addressing modern slavery risks. They provided the following answer:
We've developed a set of key performance indicators to monitor performance of OVO's modern slavery risk management initiatives. The indicators include: Key Tier 1 suppliers (Top 50 spend) aligned with our Supplier Code of Conduct; Applicable procurement led engagements that have a completed risk assessment; Number of modern slavery cases reported; Number of people in procurement roles that have completed training on modern slavery and sustainable procurement