Responsibility
Firmdale Hotels is an award-winning industry leader committed to minimising its impact upon the environment. Firmdale endeavours to promote the principle of sustainable development by adhering to and, where possible, exceeding current legislation and best practice guidelines.
Firmdale Hotels' Social Responsibility commitment encompasses working with a specified number of charities per year, one of which will always be within the local community, by offering support through the skills of its employees and the Company's own resources. The chosen local charity benefits from the direct involvement of Firmdale Hotels' employees who undertake a paid day of charitable work per year, allowing them to see the direct impact of their involvement.
Policy
Firmdale Hotels is committed to leading the industry in minimising the impact of its activities on the environment.
Firmdale endeavours to promote the principle of sustainable development by adhering to and, where possible, exceeding current legislation and best practice guidelines.
Firmdale encourages communication between its staff and suppliers to ensure that there is environmental understanding and that environmental goals are achieved.
Firmdale ensures the continued enthusiasm and commitment of its employees by providing clarity in all employment policies and training in environmental issues to that they can implement good practices in their daily work.
Crosby Street Hotel became the first hotel in New York to attain GOLD Standard status under the LEED rating system in 2011.
Firmdale Hotels now meets the requirements of CEMARSTM certification having measured its greenhouse gas emissions in compliance with the requirements of ISO 14064-1:2006, and committed to managing and reducing its emissions in respect of the operational activities of its organisation. Firmdale's target will form a 10 year plan where it would like to reduce its emissions by a minimum of 25% and this will be closely managed. Firmdale are proud of what it has achieved already from 2008, as after calculation it has reduced its emissions by just under 6% to date.
Firmdale's UK Environmental Committee was awarded Green Team of the Year by the Considerate Hoteliers Association in 2010.
Firmdale's Group Purchasing Manager was named the Green Champion of the Year by the Considerate Hoteliers Association in 2009.
Key aims:
Minimise all waste by evaluating operations and ensuring they are as efficient as possible
Actively promote recycling internally, as well as ensuring all waste contracts focus on recycling and split collections
Undertake waste reduction, re-use and recycle
To source responsibly and ensure suppliers do so too and use the best environmental practises
To minimise the 'road miles' by bulk buying and reducing the amount of deliveries into each hotel
Ensure use and storage of chemicals, raw materials and waste is carried out in such a way as to prevent pollution and minimise risk of pollution to air, land and water
Regularly review environmental performance and systems, this is done monthly by the Environmental Committee members
Set objectives and work towards them to ensure ongoing improvement in environmental performance
The current 10 year plan is to reduce energy consumption by 25%, this is monitored and reviewed monthly by looking at the consumption figures
To communicate the environmental policy throughout all levels of the company and make it available upon request
To ensure best practices, training and incentives for environmental improvement are implemented by and available to all staff
Use accredited programs for targeting our reductions - including a Cemars ISO number
Local Charity
Fine Cell Work is a charity which makes beautiful handmade products in British prisons. Teaching prisoners high-quality needlework boosts their self-worth, instils self-discipline, fosters hope and encourages them to lead independent, crime-free lives. Fine Cell Works products have been designed in collaboration with some of the country’s leading contemporary designers and are all hand-produced in limited editions. Kit Kemp has been a trustee of Fine Cell Work since 2015 and has sat on the charities' design committee for seven years.
To find out more about Fine Cell Work please CLICK HERE.
The Heritage of London Trust helps preserve the buildings and monuments that tell the story of London and its people. The Heritage of London Trust was set up by the GLC in 1980 to fill the gap in what public bodies could do for London’s lost, neglected or ruined buildings and monuments. Today, the Trust continues that role – seeking out restoration projects which help keep the city's character and charm, and provide a link to its diverse history. Kit Kemp is a trustee of Heritage of London Trust.
To find out more about Heritage of London Trust please CLICK HERE.
Breeam Excellent Rating
Ham Yard Hotel is awarded the BREEAM Excellent rating. BREEAM is a methodology to assess the sustainability and environmental performance of buildings and it was launched by BRE in 1990. BREEAM is one of the first sustainability assessment tools established in the world and it was later used as a basis for LEED green building certification programme. BREEAM reviews building performance in different categories and compares them with the established benchmarks. Ham Yard has an Excellent Energy Performance Rating which exceeds the standards of its time by more than 40%.