UPP considers wider stakeholders and the key relationships on which the Company relies through a Stakeholder Management Plan and an active approach to the management of stakeholder relationships.
The Plan identifies the people, groups and organisations which could affect or be affected by the activities of the Company – including: contract clients and key decision makers; prospective partners; shareholders; media; investors (banks, private placement and bond holders); the Office for Students; Department for Education; local government and planning departments; and other higher education (HE) sector bodies.
It analyses the needs, interests and expectations of stakeholders, sets out strategies and tactics for engagement and classifies each stakeholder by its power and interests based on an assessment of its respective interests, involvement and interdependencies.
We plan stakeholder management through tools including a designated committee (the Business Development Strategy Group (BDSG); the review and amendment of its approach to different stakeholders; the updating of business development/engagement plans for each existing partner and for those on the business development pipeline; and by updating our university stakeholder contacts list and meeting schedule and feedback.
The Company manages stakeholder engagement by identifying the key decision makers at a variety of levels at each partner institution and assigning a relationship owner. In addition, we manage engagement with existing partners on the basis of a number of statutory and informal meetings. These include Liaison Committee meetings (Contractual); Partnership Boards (Non-Contractual, Non-Statutory); and SPV Board meetings (Statutory).
We monitor stakeholder engagement through our Business Development Strategy Group (BDSG). This formalises our approach to engagement in each case and has a range of standing members from across the Company and invited attendees. Meanwhile, on-going engagement and updating of the list of university and other stakeholders is the responsibility of our Business Development Director.
To understand the needs of our university partners, we undertake regular perception audits and, to understand the views of the students who live in our residences, we undertake annual student satisfaction surveys and focus groups. We share the latter with our partners and ensure they inform subsequent action plans.
UPP identifies the key resources on which the Company relies and embeds its impact on society and the environment within its business model and strategy.
Through a business model which is purposefully designed to help universities make more effective and efficient use of their estates and other physical assets, our partnerships generate value which universities can use to focus on core areas of provision such as teaching and research, enabling them to be more effective and sustainable in the long term.
Our Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) vision and strategy is underpinned by four key principles – to develop and operate safe, secure and affordable student accommodation in a responsible way; to act in the long-term interests of our employees, our partners and their students, and our shareholders; to respect the environment and positively contribute to the communities within which we work; and to provide thought leadership to the higher education sector.