Annual Report and Accounts 2010

We believe that addressing corporate responsibility makes sound financial sense for our Company and is an essential part of good governance. Our 2010 Corporate Responsibility (CR) Report sets out our approach to and performance on the wide range of CR issues that are relevant to our business. An overview of the report is provided below.

What we do

The report reviews our approach to CR in three sections. The first section looks at our overall response to CR and sustainability. This includes details on our CR and sustainability management structure, identification of risks and opportunities, stakeholder management and our response to climate change.

Our homes and communities

The second section focuses on our commitment to building sustainable homes and communities and our aim to achieve high levels of build quality and customer care. The key areas of focus in this section are design, engaging with communities, environmental sustainability, enhancing economic growth and customer care.

Design

We strive to build appealing and affordable homes and to create communities where our customers will enjoy living. Design is about architecture and landscape, but it is also about environmental, social and economic sustainability. There is a wide range of issues that we consider when designing communities.

Engaging with communities

We seek to be a good neighbour and to engage with local communities and other stakeholder groups. Community consultation is an important part of the planning process for UK housebuilding and will become even more significant with the government's new Localism Bill. We have a strong track record of consultation when developing larger scale communities, such as our Raploch development in Stirling, Scotland and we are ensuring that this knowledge and expertise is transferred across our business. We want to be an organisation which listens, responds and ultimately delivers local requirements in the most appropriate way.

Environmental sustainability

We have a strong track record in delivering energy efficient homes and communities with a wide range of sustainability features. As a Company, we are committed to building energy efficient and sustainable homes and communities. We engage regularly with government, industry bodies and other organisations with regard to sustainability issues. We are in dialogue with these stakeholder groups about the financial viability, technical feasibility and other implications of the Code for Sustainable Homes. Our aim is to help government to create practical and achievable policies that increase energy efficiency and lower carbon emissions. Having undertaken considerable research into delivering energy efficient homes, we believe that a 'fabric first' solution is the most practical and affordable approach. This means focusing on improving the energy efficiency of the building fabric – an area in which we have considerable expertise – before considering on site renewable energy.

Enhancing economic growth

We recruit the majority of our office and site workers from the areas in which we operate. In the UK, we also provide affordable housing and contribute significant sums to infrastructure and community facilities through planning obligations. We are involved in a range of regeneration schemes that are creating vibrant new communities on formerly rundown or disused land. In addition, our larger developments integrate retail and office space that provide additional employment opportunities for local people.

Customer care

We focus on continually improving our standards of customer care and our customer experience. One key area for the UK in 2010 was ensuring compliance with the Consumer Code. All relevant employees, including Board members, attended a detailed one day briefing session. We also set up an induction programme for new employees and are monitoring compliance with the Code.

The way we work

The third section looks at the way we manage our business in the areas of human resources, health, safety and environment and supply chain management.

Employees

We seek to develop our employees' potential and help them to progress through our Company. We strive to treat employees fairly and with respect, and to provide a safe place for them to work. We seek to identify and develop their skills and talents, further improving the already high calibre of our workforce.

Health, safety and environment

We are committed to providing a safe place in which our employees and sub-contractors can work and to high standards of environmental management. During 2010, we maintained our focus on health and safety and it continues to be a non-negotiable top priority for our Group. We also take environmental issues extremely seriously. We have a comprehensive and fully integrated health, safety and environmental (HSE) management system in place in the UK. In North America, Taylor Morrison has a company-wide health and safety programme while environmental management is tackled at a Divisional level due to differences in regional legislation.

Supply chain management

Suppliers and sub-contractors play a vital role in helping us to build high quality homes and communities for our customers. We strive to work in partnership with our suppliers and sub-contractors, and to treat them fairly and with respect. We aim to do business with those who understand and aspire to our business aims and values

The 2010 report is our fourth annual CR Report as Taylor Wimpey plc. It demonstrates our work and achievements during the period from 1 January to 31 December 2010 and the full report is available online from 30 March 2011 at
http://www.taylorwimpeyplc.com/CorporateResponsibility/CRreports/