Environmental policyThe British Council recognises that its activities can have an impact on the environment and is committed to minimising its own impact by preventing pollution and continually improving its environmental performance. This will be achieved through the setting and review of objectives and targets within the framework of a broader Environmental Management System (EMS).

A formal certified EMS has been developed and will be maintained to cover the activities at our three largest UK premises: Spring Gardens, Bridgewater House and Telford Way. The principles of environmental management and the objectives of the British Council will all apply at our other UK premises and an Environmental Framework will be rolled out to our overseas sites. Among our staff we have over 100 green champions globally and green office teams throughout the network.

Equal opportunity and diversityWe continue to demonstrate our commitment to equality of opportunity and diversity and the contribution they make to our cultural relations work.

Our progress in bringing equality and diversity into the mainstream is supported by our Global Diversity Network and our Diversity Assessment Framework (DAF), a comprehensive evaluation and assessment tool that feeds into the corporate scorecard report. This is championed by our Chief Executive, Martin Davidson, who set an organisational target of level 2. Ninety-six out of 110 countries participated, reflecting the level of engagement, and an organisational average of 1.4 fell short of our level 2 target but provides an excellent platform for future development and progression.

Particularly noteworthy are the achievements of the British Council in Beijing, which this year became the first office to meet level 5, and the achievements of South Africa and Egypt, both of whom attained a level 4. The efforts of the South-East Europe region are also worthy of commendation, boasting 100 per cent participation across all 16 counties and producing a regional average of above level 2.

UK equality monitoring data shows overall progressThe percentage of minority ethnic staff has risen slightly to 16.8 per cent and in respect of pay band 10 is up from 5.3 per cent to 8.2 per cent, exceeding our 2008 target.

Gender representation within the organisation has remained consistent, with women making up 53.4 per cent of the workforce. There has been an increase of 0.5 per cent in the number of staff declaring a disability over the past year, so the proportion now stands at 2.6 per cent. Equality monitoring addressed other areas, for example sexual orientation, religion and belief and flexible working. We reported progress against the action points of our Integrated Equality Scheme and have worked with our Disability Advisory Panel in this context. Panel members act as a valuable resource and continue to include Chevening scholars.

In February 2008 diversity specialists from around the world gathered at the British Council headquarters in London for an international event aimed at exploring and sharing good practice. More than 90 participants attended the event, including 30 British Council colleagues representing eight of the 12 regions. In the morning there were presentations in plenary with speakers from ORC Worldwide, our event partners, the British Council, Sodexho, and Equality Research and Consulting, while in the afternoon, delegates had the chance to attend one of five interactive workshops, each focusing on a different part of the world. Feedback from the event was overwhelmingly positive, with many people commenting on the depth of knowledge and experience displayed by so many of the British Council delegates.