Dundas Castle Limited Sustainability Policy
To help Scotland become one of the world’s most environmentally-friendly destinations, Dundas Castle has committed to an effective environmental action plan and to the Green Tourism Business Scheme. This will involve a rigorous test of over 150 measures of environmental sustainability and an ongoing commitment to environmental responsibility.
This policy document applies to your employment at Dundas Castle Ltd, and should be observed by those working in all our departments. The policy also applies to those who are working within Dundas Castle as a contractor, agency workers, temporary workers, volunteers or suppliers.
For this policy to be effective, it must be applied throughout Dundas Castle Ltd and apply to all staff regardless of position or seniority.
1. Policy Statement
1.1 Dundas Castle is committed to reducing carbon and other emissions that impact the environment.
1.2 It is our intention, wherever practically possible, to reduce overall energy use. As a result, this also reduces the overall energy costs incurred by Dundas Castle.
1.3 We are committed to continuously improving energy efficiency.
1.4 Dundas Castle will comply with all environmental legislation in force in all areas in which our business is conducted.
1.5 This policy is intended to be practical and relevant to all employees and simple to apply in everyday work situations.
2. Monitoring
2.1 Dundas Castle will monitor and review its sustainability performance regularly and will perform a full assessment on an annual basis.
2.2 Wherever possible, steps to reduce adverse environmental impact will be taken as soon as any negative situation is identified and where it is reasonably practical to do so.
3. Lighting & Water
3.1 All office and building lighting will be reduced outside work hours. All employees must turn off office lights when leaving at the end of the day or when offices are not used for more than 30 minutes and when such lighting will not be required overnight. This excludes all lighting intended for security, fire and health and safety purposes.
3.2 All housekeeping and maintenance staff or contractors will be advised to turn off lighting outside hours when no longer required by them to perform their duties.
3.3 Dundas Castle will, where possible, upgrade or change lighting to use energy-efficient bulbs and motion-activated lighting.
3.4 All staff are asked to switch off lights immediately after a tour or event.
3.5 Wherever the facility allows, Dundas Castle has fitted water-reducing devices into our toilet cisterns and urinals.
4. Computers & Printing
4.1 We ask all employees to turn off their computers and screens at the end of each day.
4.2 Dundas Castle is committed to reducing printing costs and paper waste. Emails and documents should only be printed out when strictly necessary, for example, contracts and documents for client files. If internal printing is essential, employees are asked to print on double-sided or recycled paper.
4.3 Dundas Castle has changed to using 100% recycled white paper for internal and file use.
4.4 Dundas Castle encourages recipients of emails to comply in reducing printing by adding “SAVE PAPER – please don’t print this e-mail unless you really need to” to the email signature.
5. Vehicles & Transport
5.1 All employees are encouraged to use forms of transportation that reduce their personal use of fuel and reduce carbon emissions.
5.2 Employees are also encouraged to cycle or walk to and from work where possible.
5.3 In this respect, Dundas Castle will provide secure storage facilities for employees’ bicycles and suitable changing facilities.
5.4 All Dundas Castle vehicles will be serviced and maintained in accordance with the manufacturers’ service intervals.
5.5 Dundas Castle encourages informal car sharing for employees who live in the same locality as a method to further reduce car usage for journeys to and from work.
5.6 Dundas Castle actively promotes coach use in its client proposals to reduce the number of cars travelling to events.
6. Suppliers
6.1 Dundas Castle will favour working with local suppliers to further reduce carbon emissions by reducing travel distance.
6.2 Dundas Castle actively encourages our suppliers to reduce or reuse their packaging and, if this is not possible, recycle it in a responsible manner.
6.3 Dundas Castle reserves the right to discontinue work with any supplier that does not comply with its Environmental Policy and standards.
6.4 Dundas Castle tries to order in bulk wherever possible to reduce the number of deliveries.
6.5 Contracted caterer Heritage Portfolio sources local produce in season, wherever possible. Achieving the VisitScotland ‘Taste our Best’ award annually, the provenance, sustainability and quality of ingredients used are of paramount importance. Quality standards from field to fork and seed to plate include Red Tractor Assurance, MSC Certification, Freedom Food and LEAF, led by the principles of loyalty, respect, transparency and business integrity.
7. Recycling
7.1 Dundas Castle actively encourages all employees to recycle paper, plastics, metal, glass, organic waste and other items in the workplace.
7.2 We provide recycling containers for use by employees.
7.3 Dundas Castle and its contracted caterer Prestige Scotland are committed to recycling 100% of our organic waste. (It can then be made into compost, saving tonnes of waste being sent to landfill each year).
7.4 The recycling of paper and the disposal of items, for example, computers which may hold important or confidential client or company data, will be strictly controlled in order to comply with the Data Protection Act and preserve Dundas Castle and client data and information. If in doubt, employees should seek clarification as to whether any items should be simply recycled or disposed of securely.
8. Social Responsibility
8.1 Dundas Castle is committed to offering its exclusive hire facilities free of charge to charities on a number of occasions each year. Special catering packages have been designed for those occasions. This will also include donating stays in its Boathouse for charity auctions and raffle prizes and providing its facilities to local charities for photo shoots and community projects for profile and fundraising events
8.2 Dundas Castle will continue to be involved in local community projects such as litter picks and fundraising.
9. Staff Awareness
9.1 Dundas Castle has appointed a designated sustainability ambassador.
9.2 Dundas Castle is committed to providing a staff awareness program, including a green notice board and regular briefings on our sustainability progress and changes to our recycling facilities.
9.3 Dundas Castle keeps a training log to document each employee’s awareness and commitment.
10. Date of Implementation
This policy is effective from 1st March 2012 and shall not apply to any actions that occurred prior to this date.
11. Questions
If you have any questions regarding this policy document and how it applies to you, please contact the office on 0131 319 2039.
12. Alterations to this Policy
This policy will be subject to change and updating.