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Top Australian organisations are boosting efforts to address their corporate, social and environmental responsibilities according to the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA).

VicSuper has today been announced as the winner of ACCA’s annual Sustainability Reporting Awards sponsored by KPMG. VicSuper received the top nod in three categories; Best Sustainability Report, Best SME Report and Best Report in the Financial Service sector awards.

The awards recognise organisational excellence in environmental, social and sustainability financial reporting. Companies are judged based on transparency in their reporting and how well they communicate their corporate performance with stakeholders.

“The global economic downturn has highlighted a clear need for greater disclosure and quality of reporting, beyond compliance. It is important for Australian organisations to continue to improve reporting standards and levels of accountability with stakeholders,” says Michaela Campbell, Head of ACCA Australia and New Zealand.

“This year’s Awards show that sustainability is top-of-mind for Australian organisations. More than half the ASX50 entered this year’s awards and overall we experienced a 54 % increase in entries.

“It is encouraging to see Australian businesses taking sustainable practices on board. Of the 28 shortlisted companies, 28% were from the energy and utilities sector and 20% from the financial services sector,” says Campbell.

KPMG’s Head of Sustainability, Climate Change & Water, Jennifer Westacott, says this year’s winners are leading the way in providing stakeholders with crucial insight into their sustainability performance.

“Australian companies are taking sustainable business practices seriously, with the number of entries tripling since 2002. This reflects a growing interest in business strategies to tackle greenhouse gas emissions and sustainable business practices as a whole,” she says.

The ACCA Sustainability Reporting Awards involves an independent judging panel that considers the relationship between the organisation, the environment and social issues such employment, business ethics and corporate governance.

The judges’ report also outlines seven key recommendations on: issues disclosure, policy disclosure, supply chain, assurance framework, reporting quality, online accessibility and room for improvement.

The Awards are judged by a panel which includes Professor Carol Adams from La Trobe University, Professor Craig Deegan from RMIT University, Dr Ian Woods from AMP Capital, Chris Schulz from Allens Arthur Robinson, Francis Grey from SAM Group, Simon O’Connor from the Australian Conservation Foundation and Lyn Mayes from the New Zealand Business Council for Sustainable Development.

ACCA and sponsors KPMG would like to congratulate all entrants and winners. Please find award winners detailed below:

• Winner – Best Sustainability Report – VicSuper
• Winner – Best SME Report – VicSuper
• Winner – Best Report in the Financial Service sector – VicSuper
This report conveys a commitment to the integration of sustainability into the organisation’s business practices. It provides a clear overview of the key issues for the business and each stakeholder group and how they are being addressed. It demonstrates a clear commitment to disclosure, engaging stakeholders, with a clear improvement made based on the feedback made by judges in 2007.

• Runner Up – Best Sustainability Report – Watercare Services
• Winner – Best Report in the Water Sector – Watercare Services
The report includes good economic, social and environmental impact data and discloses performance targets and measures over five years.

• 2nd Runner Up – Best Sustainability Report –  Origin Energy
• Winner – Best Report in the Energy and Utilities sector – Origin Energy
This report provides a wealth of information about its strategies and targets for 2007-2012 and includes performance against all 2008 and 2009 targets.

• Winner – Best first-time reporter – Henry Davis York Lawyers
• Winner – Best report in the Professional Services sector – Henry Davis York Lawyers
The report includes good performance data for a first-time reporter including 2009 targets and issues, 2-5 year goals a 3-year GHG platform. It clearly outlines which board members have responsibility for sustainable development and contains a strong statement and description of what sustainable development means for the organisation.

• Winner – Best Report in the Consumer and Business Services – Toyota Motor Corporation Australia
The report provides a good overview of their operations and places them in context of the wider social and environmental systems in terms of both direct and indirect impacts.

• Winner – Best report in the materials sector – BHP Billiton
This report captures the complexity of its extensive operations and the challenges and issues that it faces. It details the stakeholder engagement process; outlines a comprehensive risk management policy and provides targets for current period and performance and against these targets and discloses targets for the next 1-5 years.

• Winner – Best Report in the Property Sector – Stockland
The report details the stakeholder engagement and the dialogue process. It also contains in-depth information on the governance of the sustainability issues and identifies which board members are responsible for sustainable development.

• Winner – Best Report in the Retail sector – Woolworths
This report details how sustainability is integrated into business operations and outlines key sustainability issues and impacts. The report outlines a clear corporate responsibility policy and strong ethical sourcing policy.

• Winner – Best Report in the Telecommunications sector – Telstra
The report clearly identifies the stakeholder engagement process and includes good disclosures on workforce diversity.

• Winner – Best Report in the Transport sector – Transurban Group
The report outlines reporting on the evolution on its greenhouse strategy and includes excellent diversity data.

• Commendation  – NGO and NFP sector – Mission Australia
The report has been commended and recognised for leading the way in sustainability reporting in the NGO and NFP sector.

• Commendation – Consumer and Business Services sector – The Warehouse Group
The report outlines examples of ethical retailing including an ethical sourcing policy and provides an analysis of resourcing issues.

• Commendation – SME sector – Finsbury Green
The report demonstrates how the integration of the sustainability policy into business processes results in a good outcome and what an SME can achieve through solid reporting.

• Commendation – SME sector – Urgent Couriers
The report includes comprehensive information about the key direct and indirect impacts to the organisation and outlines a clear GHG emissions reduction policy.

Media interviews are available with:
• Michaela Campbell, Head, ACCA Australia and New Zealand 
• Jennifer Westacott, Head of Sustainability, Climate Change & Water, KPMG

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For further information please contact:

Marcela Balart, IMPACT Communications Ph: 9519 5411 / 0422 483 371 Email: marcela@impactcommunications.com.au