Introduction
The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine ('LSHTM') is committed to improving our practices with the aim of combatting slavery and human trafficking.
This statement is made pursuant to Section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 and constitutes the LSHTM's anti slavery and human trafficking statement for the financial year ending 31 July 2024.
Organisational structure
LSHTM is a world-leading centre for research and postgraduate education in public and global health.
Our mission is to improve health and health equity in the UK and worldwide; working in partnership to achieve excellence in public and global health research, education and translation of knowledge into policy and practice.
LSHTM employs around 3,300 staff, many of whom are field based in international settings. LSHTM is made up of 3 faculties and 2 Medical Research Council units supported by 14 Professional Service Departments - organisation chart (pdf).
LSHTM is a Royal Charter organisation and holds charitable status. It is governed by Council and managed by the School Leadership Team, chaired by the Director.
Values and ethos
LSHTM seeks to foster and sustain a creative and supportive working environment based upon an ethos of respect and rigorous scientific enquiry. We embrace and value the diversity of our staff and student population and seek to promote equality as an essential element in contribution to improving health worldwide.
LSHTM's supply chain
Our procurement activities take place globally due to the worldwide nature of our research projects, however the core of our contractors and suppliers are predominantly UK and EU based. LSHTM purchases a variety of goods and services from a diverse portiolio of suppliers and across a number of categories. Analysis of spend against these categories informs the due diligence activities and future risk management approach for LSHTM.
LSHTM also undertakes a significant amount work in collaboration with research partners. This will be included in LSHTM's approach to due diligence in relation to its obligations under the Act.
LSHTM's total non-pay spend for 23/24 was c. 拢137.5尘.
Due diligence
We carried out due diligence through two routes, as a member of the London University Purchasing Consortium (LUPC).
- We assess suppliers against industry standards either by membership of schemes such as CIPS Sustainability Index (CSI) (managed by CIPS) or NetPositives, or by evidence of equivalent processes and procedures provided as part of a tender process.
- We are encouraging suppliers to engage with tools such as CSI in order to monitor and assess their status more effectively. As a member of LUPC we are affiliated to , the independent monitoring organisation that aims to help public sector organisations work together to meet their responsibility to protect the labour rights and safety of workers in global electronics supply chains more effectively than any single public buyer could accomplish on its own.
We also carry out internal due diligence on research partners.
Completed activities
122 Due Diligence assessments, including Modern Slavery Act compliance, were carried out on research collaborators.
The proportion of suppliers and contracts that have been awarded though tendering processes that include assessment of Modern Slavery Act Compliance and with relevant contract terms has continued to increase this year.
Future activities
- We will continue to apply due diligence to the supply chain utilising the supply review process built into our tendering processes.
- We will identify key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure the effectiveness of our activities in relation to the Modern Slavery Act 2015.
The activities for LSHTM for 2024-2025 will focus on improving the essential processes for supplier review and onboarding in respect of modern slavery and human trafficking as well as the wider sustainability developments.
- The assessment of LSHTM suppliers will continue, focusing on non-framework suppliers, to examine the suitability of contractual terms and commitments in respect of modern slavery and human trafficking. The contractual terms for lower value services contracts will be reviewed and updated to include suitable terms addressing modern slavery and human trafficking.
We will work to implement a more robust supplier assessment and onboarding process for addressing modern slavery and human trafficking through the new finance system implementation project.
This statement has been approved and published by LSHTM Council on 25 November 2024 and will be reviewed at least once annually.