Corporate Responsibility

Section 172 Statement

All Directors are made aware of their statutory duties under s.172 of the Companies Act 2006 (the “Act”) when they accede to the Board. Directors are entitled to request all such information as they may reasonably require in order to perform their duties in the appropriate manner, including obtaining professional advice at the Company’s expense. Should it be required, training is provided to Directors to ensure that their knowledge remains up to date. The Board of Morris Group Limited is aware of the impact of the business and the decisions we make on our stakeholders and wider society. We have considered whether we have adhered to the requirements of section 172 of the Act and have concluded that we have acted in good faith and in a way that we believe would be most likely to promote the success of the Morris Group for the benefit of all shareholders. In doing so we have recognised the importance of considering all key stakeholders and other matters (as set out in s.172 (1) (a-f) in the Act) in our decision making. Details of the Company’s key stakeholders are set out in the table below.
The table below sets out the key stakeholders, how we have engaged with them and how we have considered them in the decision making process.
Stakeholder and reason for importance to us How we engage with them How we consider them in our decision making
Shareholders

Provide funding to us to facilitate business growth and generate sustainable returns.

Our shareholders are made up of private individuals and a corporate investor, all of whom are represented on the Board.

Performance information and business updates are therefore provided to shareholders at frequent Board meetings.

Value is generated for all shareholders by delivering the strategy over the long term. By supplying comprehensive and transparent information we are able to demonstrate how the company is working towards achieving its long-term goals and hence the generation of value.

Customers

Building new homes is the reason our business exists. It is vital we listen to our customers to ensure we build homes and develop locations that they want to live in.

Our regional sales teams are dedicated to improving the customer experience.

We also constantly investing in improving our website which provides information and other functionality to customers.

We constantly strive to improve customer satisfaction which is independently monitored through surveys.

Feedback is evaluated and used to continuously improve customer service and our product offering.

Employees

We recognise that our employees enable us to achieve our goals and create a positive working environment.

Regular communication at both regional and group level takes place both formally and informally to foster a supportive and inclusive workplace.

We reward employee contributions to our success through highly competitive remuneration schemes.

We also value loyalty and invest in business continuity through a number of training and apprenticeship initiatives.

Suppliers and sub-contractors

Fostering strong relationships with our suppliers enables us to deliver high quality homes to our customers.

Regular meetings are held both regionally and at a group level with our key suppliers to ensure they are up to date on the latest developments and expected requirements.

Particular focus this year has been on educating sub-contractors on the new safety precautions put in place in response to the COVID19 pandemic.

We recognise the importance of our suppliers and subcontractors and regularly monitor payments to ensure they are paid in accordance with contractual terms.

We made a conscious decision to continue with this approach even during the period when sites were closed down as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Lenders

We are financed through a variety of sources including a term loan, revolving credit facility and development specific loans. Together with the shareholders, the lenders provide funds for future growth.

Regular reports and other operational information is provided to the lenders to keep them informed about the relevant aspects of our business. We speak to lenders frequently to encourage a collaborative approach towards the delivery of our strategy.

Our collective approach towards lenders enabled us to secure new funding during the year which will allow the business to continue to acquire new sites and deliver its business plan.

Communities

We want to build communities or integrate new developments into existing communities that people are proud to call home.

We proactively engage with local communities throughout the planning phases to understand their needs and address issues they may have.

We aim to minimise the impact of our activities during the construction our developments.

We also look to include open spaces and other amenities to augment our developments.

The Strategic Report was approved by the Board on 26 October 2021.