In discharging their Section 172 duties, the Directors of the Group are required to have regard, among other matters, to the: likely consequences of any decisions in the long term; interests of the Company’s employees; need to foster the Company’s business relationships with suppliers, customers and others; impact of the Company’s operations on the community and environment; desirability of the Company maintaining a reputation for high standards of business conduct; and need to act fairly between members of the Company.

The board follows a robust decision-making process, which is designed to ensure that any decisions made consistently reflect Wilmington’s culture of openness and transparency. The key reference points for decision making by the board are: the impact on the group’s overall strategic objectives; the effect on its principal risks and uncertainties; and positive alignment with the core values underpinning the group’s sustainability strategy. At the heart of all of these factors is consideration of the group’s stakeholders, because it is these groups who have the most significant impact on creating positive outcomes for the group as it strives to create long-term value.

How we engage with our key stakeholders:

Our people

We continually look for ways to ensure we are retain strong engagement from our people and make sure we reflect their views in our future plans. Some of the key methods of engagement are:

• Employee engagement surveys
• Global employee town halls
• Dynamic intranet information portal
• Bespoke performance development review process and feedback cycles

More information about how we stay close to our people and make Wilmington a great place to work can be found here.

Shareholders

The Directors seek to build on a mutual understanding of objectives between the Company and its institutional shareholders by means of a programme of meetings with major shareholders, fund managers and analysts each year. The Company also makes presentations to analysts and fund managers following publication of its half-year and full-year results. The Senior Independent Director is available to shareholders if they have concerns which other contacts have failed to resolve.

The Chairman or one of the other Non-executive Directors is available on request to attend meetings with major shareholders. The Board regularly receives copies of analysts’ and brokers’ briefings.

The AGM, for which at least 20 working days’ notice is given and where shareholders are invited to ask questions during the meeting and are able to meet with the Directors after the meeting, is normally attended by all the Directors. The number of proxy votes for, against or withheld in respect of each resolution is disclosed at the AGM and a separate resolution is proposed for each item

Customers

We stay close to our customers through:

• Customer Advisory Groups (‘CAGs’)
• Bespoke market research
• Strong and accessible communication channels
• Product feedback surveys

Suppliers

We stay close to our suppliers through:

• Strong and accessible communication channels
• Clear policy guidelines on portfolio websites

Communities and the environment

We recognise that we operate in an increasingly complex socio-economic environment, and that global challenges such as the Covid-19 pandemic, and the climate crisis, have the potential to significantly impact our key stakeholders. More information about how we interact with communities and the environment can be found in our sustainability strategy