The Crown Prosecution Service
Annual Report and Accounts 2023–2024

Sustainability

Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) Compliance Statement

The CPS has reported on climate-related financial disclosures consistent with HM Treasury’s Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD)-aligned disclosure application guidance for phase 1, which interprets and adapts the framework for the UK public sector. The CPS considers climate to be a principal risk, and has therefore complied with the TCFD phase 1 recommendations and recommended disclosures around:

• Governance – recommended disclosures (a) and (b)
• Metrics and Targets – recommended disclosures (b)

This is in line with the central government’s TCFD-aligned disclosure implementation timetable. The CPS plans to make disclosures for Strategy, Risk Management and Metrics and Targets disclosures (a) and (c) in future reporting periods in line with the central government implementation timetable.

2023-24 is the first phase of the TCFD-aligned disclosures and relates to Governance, with phase 2 (Risk Management) being implemented in 2024-25 and phase 3 (Strategy) being implemented in 2025-26.

Board’s oversight: Describe the board’s oversight of climate-related issues

The Board has oversight of the CPS’ Estates Strategy which is a key element of our climate related responsibilities. The strategy references the importance of sustainability, and ensures that environmental impact is considered across the CPS’ estate. The Board receives updates approximately annually on this topic with additional ad-hoc updates as and when required. As Management’s focus on managing climate-related issues matures, there will be a commensurate increase in reporting to the Board on this area.

Management’s role: Describe management’s role in assessing and managing climate-related issues

Management recently appointed a lead director for sustainability to allow us to focus on these risks, report more frequently to the Board on climate related issues and provide senior oversight. Management receives an annual report from GPA on our Estate’s sustainability performance, which covers key performance data on estate-based activities such as electricity, gas and water usage. GPA’s vision, which CPS supports, is to deliver a transformed, shared, sustainable and value for money estate, driving forward the Net Zero programme by delivering projects to reduce carbon emissions and energy usage. The GPA Workplace Design Guide builds sustainability into every stage of the asset lifecycle. The GPA report can be found in the Government Property Agency (GPA) Sustainability report section below.

Emissions; Disclose Scope 1, Scope 2, and Scope 3 GHG emissions and the related risks

The CPS is at an early stage in its consideration of climate related risks and opportunities, and as such we have not included any climate change risks in our top-tier risk register. The CPS collects various data in respect of its activities and how they impact on its performance in respect of the Government Greening Commitments (GGC) and in assisting government achieve its Net Zero by 2050 target. Below is a summary of the specific information, currently captured by the CPS.

Official business travel

The CPS makes use of a centrally sourced travel contract which provides details of alternatives to travel, and the travel and subsistence manual informs staff that alternative methods of travel should be considered before booking a flight.

Official business travel includes travel by staff and witnesses attending court where a flight or rail was used for the purpose of business and where this was booked via the CPS’ official business travel provider.

The CPS is not currently able to capture the metrics in respect of official business travel carried out using personal or hire car motor vehicles.

The CPS does not have any fleet vehicles for use by its staff.

Flight data

Flights are recorded in line with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) guidelines using data provided by the CPS’ official business travel provider.

Flights are classified in to the following four categories.

• Domestic flights are flights which originate and end within the United Kingdom.
• Short-haul flights are flights that originate or end in the United Kingdom, which are below 3,700km in distance.
• Long-haul flights are flights that originate or end in the United Kingdom, which are over 3,700km.
• International flights are flights that do not originate or end in the UK. This category was introduced in 2021-22 and data prior to this period is not available.

In 2017-18, the total number of domestic flights was 190 and the total distance of domestic flights was 138,256km, with an average distance of 728km per flight. Total Emissions including RF was 36.87 tonnes Co2e.

In 2023-24, the total number of domestic flights was 193 and the total distance of domestic flights was 83,567km, with an average distance of 433km per flight. Total Emissions including RF was 22.78 tonnes Co2e.

The CPS has reduced its emissions from domestic flights by 38.2% against the 2017-18 baseline, the CPS is achieving its headline target to reduce emissions from domestic flights by 30% from the 2017-18 baseline by the end of 2025.

In 2023-24, the total number of international flights was 238 and the total distance of international flights was 711,682km, with an average distance of 2,990km per flight. Total emissions including RF was 105.00 tonnes Co2e.

The table below shows the number of domestic and international flights, the distance travelled in kilometres and the tonnes of Co2e including Radiative Forcing (RF) emissions, disaggregated by category and class of flight.

Flight distances (km)

Table 1: Flight distances

Flight emissions (tonnes Co2 including RF)

Table 2: Flight emissions

Rail

Table 3: Rail travel

The CPS official business travel contractor offers rail as the preferred method of business travel. The table below shows the total kilometres travelled and the tonnes of Co2 including Radiative Forcing (RF) emissions.

Expenditure on official business travel

Table 4: Expenditure on official business travel

 The table below details the expenditure by financial year on official business travel. Expenditure relating to witness travel is not able to be disaggregated from total witness expenditure and is, therefore, not included.

Other sustainability commitments

Paper usage

Paper usage in 2017-18 was reported on a whole of Law Officer’s Departments basis, however CPS no longer receives this information on this basis.

Paper usage in the CPS is demand led with the majority of paper usage relating to the bulk print contract which includes the printing of jury bundles.

Table 5: Paper usage

Paper usage for 2023-24 was 114,567 reams which is a 125% increase from that reported for the whole of Law Officer’s Departments in 2022-23. The 114,567 reams includes paper used across the CPS estate including the bulk print contract. Therefore, comparison with the 2017-18 baseline and the prior years cannot directly be made but has been included for transparency.

Consumer Single Use Plastics and Ultra Low Emission Vehicle (ULEVs)

The Data for CSUPs and ULEV was reported on a whole of Law Officer’s Departments basis from 2021-22 until 2022-23. The CPS does not collate data on its CSUP usage. Therefore, no figures are available for 2023-24 and prior year figures have been included below for transparency purposes.

The CPS does not currently have any vehicles available for its staff, this includes ULEVs.

Table 6: CSUP and ULEV

Data of CSUPs and ULEVs was not collated prior to 2021-22; data for CSUPs only comprises of Q1 – Q3 procurement.

Sustainable procurement

The CPS Commercial team are embedding Carbon Net Zero provisions in all appropriate tenders (£5m+ annual spend) and are working with our key suppliers to ensure that our social value models are also driving greater sustainability.

This includes, for example, ensuring that in seeking to dispose of equipment, re-use is considered ahead of recycling, particularly with schools and charities to support community engagement.

Commercial Contract Management (CCM) review sustainability performance indicators in all applicable contracts and will be working closely with our most critical suppliers to build upon their existing work in the field of Carbon Net Zero across their own organisations and supply chains.

The CPS Commercial function ensures that sustainability clauses are embedded within the CPS’ contracts and meet the Government Buying Standards, both at procurement stage and through effective contract management.

Financial stability checks for gold contracts (most critical and strategic) have been introduced to further monitor supply chain sustainability, and the contracts state that suppliers must support Corporate Social Responsibility and ensure sustainability is at the forefront of their purchase of goods and services.

The CPS Sourcing Strategy includes reference to Government Buying Standards to ensure that they are considered for all procurements. The majority of our contracts are let through frameworks. The SQ (standard questionnaire) in the CPS e-tendering portal includes the minimum requirements for Carbon Net Zero in line with PPN 06/21. The CPS utilises the model goods and services standard terms and conditions which support sustainability, including the commitment to carbon net zero (where annual expenditure exceeds the £5m threshold) and environmental obligations through the Social Value questions included in the procurements. In respect of CPS hardware contracts, we have been able to re-use old laptops and dispose to a Charity. This will be an initiative that we embed further.

The CPS does not currently have a Sustainability Champion and the Commercial Function will be working with the wider CPS to review and introduce the CPS sustainability policy and appoint a Sustainability Champion. The Commercial Learning Offer includes the completion of CIPS Level 4-6 which includes training on Sustainable Procurement. Training is also available through Civil Service Learning which is highlighted both on the Commercial Learning Offer as well as the Induction Pack for new starters. This Induction Pack is also used more widely by the Finance and Estates teams.

Social value

The CPS Commercial team appointed a Head of Strategic Sourcing with a lead role in developing our social value models to deliver wider CPS priorities. Together with Commercial Contract Management (CCM), this role will target social value at new initiatives including re-use and recycling of equipment, digital inclusion, employment for underrepresented groups and capability development across supply chains in key areas such as anti-slavery and carbon net zero. Under our structure, the Head of Commercial Policy will monitor the inclusion of social value in tenders and the CCM will track benefits realisation to ensure commitments are delivered.

Policy making and rural proofing

The CPS is committed to working with the GPA to mainstream sustainable development in the policy making process. The CPS seeks to ensure that due consideration will be given to impacts often seen as peripheral such as sustainability and rural proofing (where applicable).

Reducing environmental impacts from Information and Communications Technology (ICT) and Digital

In line with the Greening Government Commitment requirements, the CPS continues to report on how they are reducing environmental impacts from ICT and Digital, being careful to include measures and tangible outcomes, as well as, including commentary on overall ICT and Digital policy with reference to ethical and environmental standards – e.g. disposal of laptops & other hardware and how they were disposed etc. The CPS requires all suppliers to provide details on their sustainability policy, practice and approach and complete an annual return, which is used in turn to complete the Sustainable Technology Asset Reporting return, due annually in May.

From the STAR meeting in January, it was proposed that there would be a cross government working group, involving the CPS, where Terms of Reference are due to be approved by end of May.

Specifically, this year, 2024, in addition to continuing to recycle laptops by donating them to schools, and the continued use of Teams 2 to support hybrid working it is the intention to make further progress on two initiatives during 2024.

• Digital Jury Bundles – after a successful mock trial, the CPS will be tendering for a solution for a national rollout. This analysis of a mock digital-only trial created a strong case for taking this option further and the initiative has been awarded funding from central government. The CPS is seeking to provide Juries and other key participants in Crown Court trials with Jury bundles via a digital solution. Jury bundles contain the exhibits that Prosecution & Defence Counsel intend to refer to during the trial. These are usually documentary exhibits such as telephone records, transcripts of the defendant’s police interview, diagrams and photographs. At present the printing out of jury bundles accounts for the majority of all printing in the CPS and if this process can be digitised will represent a significant saving in carbon footprint. The CPS is working closely with HMCTS and other partners in the criminal justice system to achieve this solution.
• Recycling of folders and separators used in jury bundles. There is an ongoing initiative to reuse the folders used for organising jury bundles; these are returned to the regional print rooms for reuse. At present prior to the introduction of Digital Jury Bundles this will represent a reduction in costs c. £100-150k over the lifetime of the managed print contract, increasing the use of recycling.

Summary of sustainability performance from estates-based activities

Government Property Agency (GPA) are fully responsible for delivering all our estates services to include all elements of sustainability and Net Zero across our estate. Our team partners with their counterparts within the wider GPA teams (property, workplace services, capital projects and sustainability) to ensure we receive the best service possible. We work together to finalise the appropriate level of investment into the CPS estate that ensures we continue to improve on how sustainable our estate is. Further information on the performance of the GPA estate occupied by the Law Officers Department can be found in the GPA sustainability report section below.

Government Property Agency (GPA) Sustainability report

This report sets out the Sustainability Performance of the GPA estate occupied by the CPS, for 2023-24, covering key performance data on estate-based activities such as electricity, gas and water use.

GPA’s vision is to deliver a transformed, shared, sustainable and value for money estate, driving forward the Net Zero programme by delivering projects to reduce carbon emissions and energy usage. The GPA Workplace Design Guide builds sustainability into every stage of the asset lifecycle.

Below is a summary on the key greening government commitment reporting areas with specific updates for the properties that the CPS occupies.

Scope and data validation

Data provided for energy consumption, greenhouse gas emissions, water usage and waste management is provided to the CPS by the Government Property Agency (GPA). The greening government performance targets were set at a whole of Law Officer’s Departments (LOD) level in 2017-18. Due to the nature of the CPS’ estate and the data available, from 2017-18 -2022-23 it has not been possible to split out the CPS emissions and consumption from LOD overall figures.

Data for 2023-24 is provided to the CPS by GPA on a CPS only basis and is therefore not comparable to prior years. The data has been included for transparency purposes only.

The CPS performance against the GGC headline targets from 2017-18 to 2022-23 was reported on a whole of LOD’s basis. The 2023-24 performance figures and achievements are recorded on a CPS only basis against the 2017-18 baseline.

GGC headline performance

Table 7: Summary of Greening Government Commitments performance

Sustainability performance of estate-based activities

Greenhouse gas emissions and financial costs

Table 8: Greenhouse gas emissions 2023-24

*Definitions for Scope 1-3 emissions can be found at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/647f50dd103ca60013039a8a/2023-ghg-cf-methodology-paper.pdf

Table 9: Energy Consumption and financial costs

Waste minimisation and management

Table 10: Waste minimisation and management

Water consumption

Table 11: Water consumption and costs