WESTERN PROVIDENT ASSOCIATION LIMITED modern slavery statement summary (2024)

Organisation address
Rivergate House,
Blackbrook Park,
Taunton,
Somerset,
TA1 2PE

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 5 of 6 recommended topics

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

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Modern Slavery Statement- March 2024.pdf

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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

WESTERN PROVIDENT ASSOCIATION LIMITED modern slavery statement for 2024 is a group statement covering 3 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 2023 to 31 December 2023

The statement was signed off by:
Nathan Irwin (Chief Executive)

It was approved by the board (or equivalent management body) on:
22 March 2024

Recommended topics covered by the statement

Government guidance encourages organisations to cover a range of topics 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 topics in the statutory guidance.

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

Topics 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 Not covered
WPA have a zero tolerance for Modern Slavery and associated practices, therefore any identified breach would be unacceptable. We will seek to better define this position within our next statement.

The organisation’s sectors and turnover

Sectors

The organisation operates in the following sectors:

  • Charitable / not-for-profit activities
  • Financial, insurance and real estate activities

Turnover

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

£100 million to £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:
More than 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.
Organisation’s response
The organisation told us its policies do not include any of the provisions we listed in our question.

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 Yes
Your front line staff Yes
Human resources Yes
Executive-level staff Yes
Procurement staff Yes
Your suppliers No
The wider community No
Other
No

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 No
Civil society organisations No
Professional auditors No
Workers within your organisation Yes
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 No

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.
Organisation’s response
The organisation told us it did not carry out any social audits during the period of the statement.

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:
WPA HR staff spoke to on-site contractors eg cleaners, to check on their welfare & working conditions (at a high level) WPA is a Real Living Wage employer and ensures all on-site workers get the RLW.

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)

The risk of lower paid (higher risk) on-site suppliers of services WPA procures. Mitigation We speak to these workers regularly WPA request that all on-site workers receive the real living wage
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
In which country Organisation’s response: No details provided
Actions or plans to address this risk Organisation’s response: WPA's HR Team regularly speak to the on-site contractors eg for Cleaning and Catering services - to check for welfare as well as Modern Slavery type risks.

Priority risks for this organisation (2 of 3)

Our Bangalore offshore Operation (Wholly owned) Mitigation: Weekly discussions with the Manager and Assistant Manager Regular visits from the UK Management Team
Questions we asked about this risk Organisation’s response
Where it was most likely to occur Organisation’s response: Within your own operations.
Who was it most likely to affect Organisation’s response: No details provided
In which country Organisation’s response: No details provided
Actions or plans to address this risk Organisation’s response: This is a wholly owned subsidiary operation - therefore giving WPA a greater degree of control over the company its culture and how it conducts business. The UK Management Team have multiple video calls per week with the Indian Team. UK Managers visit the Indian office several times a year. WPA undertakes an annual staff survey (anonymous) and all Indian employees are encouraged to participate.

Priority risks for this organisation (3 of 3)

Lack of awareness of Modern Slavery Mitigation: All WPA employees recently undertook Modern Slavery awareness training.
Questions we asked about this risk Organisation’s response
Where it was most likely to occur Organisation’s response: Within your own operations.
Who was it most likely to affect Organisation’s response: No details provided
In which country Organisation’s response: No details provided
Actions or plans to address this risk Organisation’s response: Companywide training took place.

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:
WPA have a zero tolerance approach to Modern Slavery and is vigilant to which suppliers we engage with. We have not identified any instances of Modern Slavery or indications that it could be taking place. Please note that most of our suppliers are Tier 1.