Sustainability report verification and assurance services
For thousands of organizations, of all types and sizes, right across the world, CSR/sustainability reporting is an increasingly vital factor in presenting their social, environmental and economic credentials to stakeholders and the wider community.
Regulatory and competitive pressures combined with growing stakeholder expectations demand transparent, robust and objective reporting. But without independent assessment and assurance, even the most rigorous CSR/sustainability report may lack credibility. So your CSR efforts would not be fully recognized – or rewarded.
CSR/Sustainability Report Assurance (SRA) from BSI, could provide your employees, customers, shareholders and other stakeholders with authoritative, independent assurance that your sustainability reporting is robust, relevant and reliable.
SRA can also help mitigate risks to your reputation, add value to your brand and, perhaps most importantly, demonstrate that your organization has addressed the issues and risks associated with its social, environmental and economic performance.
Who benfits from SRA?
Whatever the type or size of your organization, wherever the location and wherever you are on the road to CSR/sustainability reporting, you could benefit from gaining SRA.
Next steps
Contact us for more details.
Independent Sustainability Report Assurance (SRA) provides an objective verification of your CSR/sustainability report. Assessments are normally conducted in accordance with the globally recognised Global Reporting Initiative, GRI (G3) Guidelines, and AA1000 Assurance Standard (PDF, 200kB).
The BSI assurance process addresses three key areas of your reporting:
- Materiality - we'll assess your prioritization of issues and identify any omissions or misrepresentations that could influence the decisions or actions of your stakeholders. We'll also assess the significance of your report content in relation to your organization and your stakeholders.
- Completeness - we'll evaluate your organization's diligence in identifying and understanding the material impact of your sustainability performance.
- Responsiveness - we'll determine whether your report communicates and provides evidence that you have responded effectively to stakeholder concerns, policies and relevant standards.
On the successful completion of the assessment, we'll produce an Independent Assurance Opinion.
Matching your needs - precisely
Not all organizations require, or can attain, the same level of CSR/Sustainability Report Assurance. That's why our assurors can recommend any of four levels of SRA. Each one is specifically devised to meet the needs of organizations at differing stages of their reporting development.
Level 1: CSR/Sustainability Check
This entry level service is typically audited against the sustainable development maturity matrix in BS 8900. We evaluate whether your organization has processes defined and procedures in place to support the activities and programs needed to produce a meaningful report, and inform you of the outcome in a gap analysis report.
Level 2: Report Check
The information within your report is verified which may require one or two visits to your headquarters and discussions with senior management and other contributors. You will receive a recommendation aligned with the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Application Levels and a report commentary for your internal use.
Level 3: Limited Assurance
This higher level of assurance is similar to that provided by financial auditors commenting on a company's report and accounts. We will evaluate your report in accordance with the principles of the GRI G3 Guidelines and AA1000AS (PDF, 200kB), assessing your underlying data and management systems as well as your sustainability performance.
The depth of engagement must be sufficient to provide assurance that your report is free from material misstatement, based upon sampling within the agreed scope of the assurance and the information you provide. Along with the public Independent Assurance Opinion, you will receive a confidential report describing the assurance team's findings and providing you with insights into potential areas for improvement.
Level 4: Reasonable Assurance
This highest level of SRA evaluates your report in accordance with AA1000AS (PDF, 200kB) and/or the GRI G3 Guidelines or other applicable standard.
We will assess your underlying data and management systems to provide assurance in the extent to which your company has performed against your sustainability objectives and assure that your report is inclusive, complete and responsive to stakeholder needs. You will receive an Independent Assurance Opinion for publishing in your sustainability report as well as a detailed confidential engagement report describing the assurance team's findings and indicating areas for further improvement.
Next steps
Contact us for more details.
The document(s) which are available for downloading need to be viewed and printed through the use of Adobe Acrobat Reader which is available free at the Adobe Systems Incorporated website.
Gaining SRA further demonstrates your commitment to CSR and the environment. At the same time it will:
- Increase stakeholder trust and confidence
Independent SRA gives investors, customers, employees and other stakeholders more trust in your report's content and more confidence in all interactions with your organization.
- Widen your audience of potential shareholders
Assured reports can be accurately benchmarked by CSR/sustainability indices such as FTSE4Good and the Dow Jones Sustainability Index.
- Gain the competitive edge
SRA demonstrates that you've addressed the issues and risks associated with your CSR/sustainability performance.
- Improve efficiency and reduce costs
The assurance process could identify areas for greater efficiency in your sustainability program and indicate opportunities for reducing costs.
- Protect your brand and your reputation
Independent SRA helps ensure the information you publicize is valid, reliable and thereby defendable.
- Accelerate strategic decision making
In the knowledge that your report is robust, board management will make strategic decisions with greater certainty.
Next steps
Contact us for more details.
