Riding on the success of British Land's win in the Business in the Community Arts & Business Awards last month for its work with the New Diorama Theatre, the company has been recognised with the reaccreditation of four 'Big Ticks' as part of the prestigious Responsible Business Awards 2014, which are run by the charity Business in the Community.

A Big Tick is a leading endorsement of responsible business, and companies are awarded for initiatives tackling a range of issues: from stimulating local or rural communities, building long-term partnerships with schools, inspiring young talent, to embedding environmental sustainability into how products and services are used by customers. 

British Land achieved the Big Tick reaccreditations in the following award categories:

Building Stronger Communities Award

  • Art: space for young carers in London with arts charity Create.
  • Get into Retail at St Stephen's Shopping Centre, Hull with the Prince's Trust
  • Outward Bound and Anti-Gang at Glasgow Fort Shopping Park with Family Action in Rogerfield and Easterhouse (FARE)

Arts and Business Award

  • Creative Curriculum with Camden School Improvement Service

All these programmes have been reaccredited this year for demonstrating continuous positive impact on the local communities in which British Land operates and supports.

Lucinda Bell, Finance Director and Chair of British Land's Corporate Responsibility Committee said, " We are delighted with our reaccreditation in the Responsible Business Awards as this affirms British Land's long term commitment to engaging with local communities and being a partner of choice for many organisations. It is also a tribute to those recognised organisations with whom we have worked, who consistently deliver positive outcomes to local needs such as training, education and development."

Commenting, Stephen Howard, Chief Executive, Business in the Community said: "All year round, responsible businesses across the UK are contributing towards more resilient communities, stimulating local economies, creating diverse, skilled and healthy workforces and addressing skills shortages - yet these activities rarely get attention. The Responsible Business Awards shine a much-needed spotlight on the powerful impact of business. Each of the companies recognised are playing their part to build a new contract between business and society and a more sustainable future for us all.  I congratulate British Land for its' Big Tick reaccreditation, which is a powerful symbol of business doing more to bring about change."

Some of the Big Tick companies from across the UK were also shortlisted to present their programme/initiative to a select group of senior business peers to identify an overall winner in each category. Winners will be announced in London at Business in the Community's National Awards Gala Dinner, in the presence of HRH The Prince of Wales and in partnership with the 2013 Responsible Business of the Year Jaguar Land Rover, on 8 July 2014.

Notes to Editors

For information about British Land's reaccredited programmes, contact: Helen Lo
07912 572619 helenlo@btinternet.com

For further information about the impact and background to the 2014 successful Award stories, visit www.bitc.org.uk/awardstories from 2 June 2014.

For information about Business in the Community or the Responsible Business Awards contact: Ochuko Adekoya, 020 7566 8758 ochuko.adekoya@bitc.org.uk

The Responsible Business Awards
Business in the Community's Responsible Business Awards are designed for business by business.  Rigorously assessed by business peers from all sectors, the Awards encourage and celebrate businesses that are helping secure a fairer society and a more sustainable future for us all.

In 2014 Business in the Community received 413 entries for the responsible business awards, awarded 159 new Big Ticks, and re-accredited 82 previous Big Tick programmes. 60 Companies have been shortlisted for a chance to be crowned overall winner in their category.

About British Land
We are one of Europe's largest publicly listed real estate companies. We own, manage, develop and finance a portfolio of high quality commercial property, focused on retail locations around the UK and London Offices & Residential. We have total assets in the UK, owned or managed of £17.8 billion (British Land share of which is £12.0 billion), as valued at 31 March 2014. Our properties are home to over 1,000 different organisations and receive over 300 million visits each year. Our objective is to deliver long-term and sustainable total returns to our shareholders and we do this by focusing on Places People Prefer. People have a choice where they work, shop and live and we aim to create outstanding places which make a positive difference to people's everyday lives. Our customer orientation enables us to develop a deep understanding of the people who use our places. We employ a lean team of experts, who have the skills to translate this understanding into creating the right places, and we have an efficient capital structure which is able to effectively finance these places.

UK Retail assets account for 53% of our portfolio. As the UK's largest listed owner and manager of retail space, our portfolio is well matched to the different ways people shop today, from major regional shopping centres to single occupier locations. We are focused on being the destination of choice for retailers and their customers by being the best provider of spaces and services. Comprising around 25 million sq ft of retail space across 66 retail parks, 85 superstores, 15 shopping centres, 12 department stores and 77 leisure assets, the retail portfolio is modern, flexible and adaptable to a wide range of formats.

Our Office and Residential portfolio, which accounts for 47% of our portfolio is focused on London, We have an attractive mix of high‑quality buildings in well‑managed environments and a pipeline of development projects which will add significantly to our portfolio. Increasingly, our offices are in mixed-use environments which include retail and residential elements. Our 7.3 million sq ft of high quality office space includes Regent's Place and Paddington Central in the West End and Broadgate, the premier City office campus (50% share).

Our size and substance demands a responsible approach to business. We believe leadership on issues such as sustainability helps drive our performance and is core to the delivery of our overall objective of driving shareholder value and creating Places People Prefer.

Further details can be found on the British Land website at www.britishland.com

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