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Modern Slavery Statement

This statement is made pursuant to Section 54(1) of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 and outlines our commitment to addressing slavery and human trafficking within our operations and supply chains.
Cognithan provides care and support to adults with learning disabilities, mental health conditions, and other complex and challenging needs in the community. The individuals we support are funded by local authorities, Integrated Care Boards, and other health and social care organizations.

Overview

Cognithan's primary operations include adult care and community support services, encompassing the people we employ and those we support. Our activities can be categorized into two key areas, each presenting both opportunities and risks related to modern slavery:

  • People: This includes both the individuals we directly employ and the service users we support. Our service users consist of a diverse group of adults with various care needs.
  • Supply Chains: This encompasses suppliers and contractors across various services, such as hospitality (e.g., food services, catering, cleaning, laundry), allied health, employment agencies, pharmacy and medical supplies, property services (e.g., maintenance, utilities, waste management, security), information and communication technology, gardening, equipment purchases, property development, and investment advisory services.

Policies

Our approach to modern slavery aligns with our commitment to social responsibility, equality, diversity, inclusion, and transparency. We have established several policies and procedures to support our commitment to mitigating the risks of modern slavery and human trafficking, including:

  • Modern Slavery Policy: This policy outlines key issues and our response, including a process for reporting concerns internally.
  • Human Resources Policies: These policies protect our employees from unfair treatment and foster a fair and inclusive workplace.
  • Recruitment and Selection Policy: This policy ensures that we vet new employees by confirming their identities, qualifications, and conducting Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks for all positions.
  • Market-Related Pay and Rewards: Our compensation structure is reviewed annually to ensure fairness and alignment with industry standards.
  • Wellbeing Strategy: We offer initiatives to support our employees' physical and mental health and well-being.
  • Whistleblowing Policy: This policy encourages employees to report concerns confidentially.

Due Diligence Processes

To identify and mitigate the risk of modern slavery and human trafficking in our supply chains, we have implemented several due diligence procedures:

  • Identifying and assessing potential risk areas in our business and supply chains.
  • Mitigating the risk of slavery and human trafficking.
  • Monitoring potential risk areas within our supply chains.
  • Ensuring adequate protection for whistleblowers.

Assessing and Managing Risk

To apply resources effectively, we focus our due diligence efforts on areas with the highest potential risk in our supply chains. These high-risk areas include:

  • Complex employment relationships, such as reliance on agency, outsourced, or subcontracted workers.
  • Dependence on low-skilled or unskilled labor.
  • A high proportion of temporary, seasonal, or agency workers.
  • Dangerous or physically demanding work.

Monitoring

We will regularly review and monitor the effectiveness of the measures we have put in place to address modern slavery and human trafficking within our business and supply chains by:

  • Investigating complaints related to modern slavery and human trafficking, whether raised by employees, the public, or law enforcement agencies.
  • Tracking the number of employees who have received training on modern slavery and human trafficking.
  • Reviewing high-risk supply chains and monitoring them through contract management activities.
  • Conducting periodic internal audits to ensure compliance with our policies.

Training

We provide mandatory training for all employees to raise awareness of modern slavery risks and to inform them of how to report concerns through our internal processes.