Our sustainability statement
McCarthy Stone is the UK’s leading developer and manager of retirement communities.
Our customers maintain their independence within a beautiful, secure, contemporary private home, while enjoying the peace of mind that help and care is on hand if needed. Our communities make a positive difference to the lives of our customers and we are focused on supporting and championing the role, wellbeing and happiness of older people in society.
All developments built since 2010 are managed by our in-house management services team, providing peace of mind that we will look after customers and their properties for the long term. We currently operate 475 developments across the UK for more than 20,000 people.
Our commitment to quality and customer service continues to be recognised by residents. In March 2021, we again received the full five-star rating for customer satisfaction from the Home Builders Federation. We’ve achieved this rating every year we have taken part in the survey.
Later life is often misrepresented and we live in an ageist world. Therefore, we also want to provide a more positive view of what it means to be old. That means supporting, campaigning and speaking up for our customers and highlighting their contribution to society, as well as championing their role, wellbeing and happiness.
At the same time, we want our developments to be sustainable; built for the long-term, with minimal footprint during construction and use, supporting nature and making a clear positive contribution to the places they are in.
Sustainability at McCarthy Stone flows from our Purpose, Vision and Mission
All of these ideas – our support for people, and our desire for environmental sustainability – come together in our Sustainability Strategy.
Purpose
Championing the role, well-being and happiness of older people in society.
Vision
Creating communities for our customers that nurture a sense of belonging, independence and peace of mind.
Mission
Developing beautiful, sustainable and more affordable places to live, with flexible services and a choice of ownership options, designed around our customers and their families.
Sustainability Strategy and Objectives
We have defined four imperatives in our Sustainability Strategy:
- Creating Communities
- Sustainable Living
- Developing People
- Building Clean and Green
Creating Communities
As a champion for older people, our developments have a strong social purpose. We support independent, connected lives in thriving communities. We are part of the fabric of social care in the UK. We help residents stay healthy and independent for longer.
Our Objectives
- Our customers will be more satisfied, happier and feel their lives are more worthwhile (v ONS4 as a benchmark of the general population)
- Establish a £1m Charitable Foundation aligned with these sustainability goals
- Form external partnerships to advocate for the role of older people in society
- Develop an awareness of dementia among our employees and how they can help improve the lives of people living with dementia
Sustainable Living
We take a whole-life approach to sustainability; low lifetime impacts, peace of mind for residents, smart technology, positive local investment in towns and cities, and building with biodiversity and aesthetics in mind.
Our objectives
- Net Zero Carbon for all new buildings by 2030
- Net biodiversity gain at all new sites from 2023
- Increase the number of new homes built with Modern Methods of Construction (MMC)
- Establish a Sustainable Sourcing policy and assess all key suppliers against it
- Reduce energy use in our existing estate and carbon emissions across our business
Developing People
We develop our people as our success depends on them. We invest in our people – their skills and capabilities. We value a diverse and inclusive team. We partner
with others to achieve these outcomes.
Our objectives
- Great Places to Work certified by 2023 and beyond
- We meet or exceed the Great Places to Work benchmark for training and development by 2023 and beyond
- Fully utilise the apprentice levy
- Champion Equality, Diversity and Inclusion and create a diverse business that looks to address its needs by offering real opportunities to underrepresented groups and builds an external reputation as the voice equality and an aspirational place to work
Building Clean and Green
Efficient building is clean building; we reduce waste, cut our energy use and drive towards zero Carbon wherever we work. Our sites are as safe and good-neighbourly as we can make them.
Our objectives
- 99% of our site waste to be diverted from landfill and continually reduce waste per home
- 100% of our new sites to be Considerate Constructors
- Zero accidents, always
Governance and Reporting
The Group Sustainability Committee, led by our CEO, oversees the Sustainability Strategy.
Separate management committees oversee the four strategic imperatives (one addresses the two environmental elements, and the other the two social elements).
These committees track progress towards a set of detailed objectives, which include the actions shown above.
A third committee focuses on Governance and reporting, ensuring the Group is compliant with its wider obligations and is responsible for the quality and integrity of our external disclosures.
In our first year, we focused on...
Find out more about our sustainability efforts
Improving waste management on site at McCarthy Stone
Sustainability Living and Building Clean and Green Report
As part of the environmental agenda, we published our Sustainable Living and Building Clean & Green Strategy, overseen by our Group Sustainability Committee. This report provides an update on FY22 including highlights, key successes and our key objectives for 2023-2025.
Download our Sustainable living and building clean and green report 2022
McCarthy Stone embraces game-changing Modern Methods of Construction
It’s a transformative time for the industry and we are delighted to be at the forefront.
Innovative Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) are high quality, sustainable and efficient. Housing Minister Chris Pincher MP states MMC is the future for the sector and urges
Britain to become a global leader in this game-changing method of construction. He says, “it’s vital we continue to bring new and innovative ideas to the table in support of delivering more beautifully designed homes at pace.”
We’re pleased to be leading the way with MMC in the housing sector with our strategic partners Sigmat, a leading European manufacturer. Our pilot scheme in Hexham last year was a tremendous success. We now plan to build 25% of our schemes in this way.
To find out more, watch our new modern methods of construction video