Modern Slavery Act

Our Company

Laura James is a pure ecommerce brand trading across 8 sales platforms across the UK, France and Ireland, including 3 own brand Laura James websitesA passionate team of 50 support the growth and development of the brand from the Pangbourne and Sheffield locations, all backing the ambition to deliver excellent value furniture and a great experience to our customer.  

Purpose

Modern slavery is a crime and a violation of fundamental human rights. It takes various forms, such as slavery, servitude, forced and compulsory labour and human trafficking, all of which have in common the deprivation of a person's liberty by another in order to exploit them for personal or commercial gain. 

We have a zero-tolerance approach to modern slavery, and we are committed to acting ethically and with integrity in all our business dealings and relationships and to implementing and enforcing effective systems and controls to ensure modern slavery is not taking place anywhere in our own business or in any of our supply chains. 

We are also committed to ensuring there is transparency in our own business and in our approach to tackling modern slavery throughout our supply chains, consistent with our disclosure obligations under the Modern Slavery Act 2015. We expect the same high standards from all our contractors, suppliers, and other business partners. As part of our contracting processes, we include specific prohibitions against the use of forced, compulsory or trafficked labour, or anyone held in slavery or servitude, whether adults or children, and we expect that our suppliers will hold their own suppliers to the same high standards. 

Related Policy and Procedures

To ensure that we minimise the risk of harm associated with modern slavery and human trafficking, in our business operations we operate internal policies. These policies are also designed, more generally, to ensure that we are conducting business in an ethical and transparent manner. This Modern Slavery (Anti-Slavery and Human Trafficking) Policy interacts with the following workplace policies and procedures: 

  • Bullying and harassment policy
  • Diversity and inclusion policy 
  • Recruitment and selection policy 

    Responsibility For Policy

    Our managers have day-to-day responsibility to ensure compliance with our legal and ethical obligation. 

    The Human Resources has primary and day-to-day responsibility for implementing this policy, monitoring its use and effectiveness, dealing with any queries about it, and auditing internal control systems and procedures to ensure they are effective in countering modern slavery. 

    Management at all levels are responsible for ensuring those reporting to them understand and comply with this policy and are given adequate and regular training on it and the issue of modern slavery in supply chains. 

    Compliance With This Policy

    Our employees are required to avoid any activity that might lead to, or suggest, a breach of this policy. The prevention, detection and reporting of modern slavery in any part of our business or supply chains is the responsibility of all those working for us or under our control.  

    We aim to encourage openness and will support anyone who raises genuine concerns in good faith under this policy, even if they turn out to be mistaken. We are committed to ensuring no one suffers any detrimental treatment as a result of reporting in good faith their suspicion that modern slavery of whatever form is or may be taking place in any part of our own business or in any of our supply chains.  

    Communication and Awareness of This Policy

    Training on this policy, and on the risk our business faces from modern slavery in its supply chains, is being provided as necessary. 

    Our zero-tolerance approach to modern slavery is communicated to all suppliers, contractors and business partners at the outset of our business relationship with them and reinforced as appropriate thereafter.