Identify 1 two recent Corporate Social Responsibility reports of two UK companies. Compare and discuss (up to 1000 words) how environmental and social issues form the Corporate Social Responsibility strategy of the organisations. Particular emphasis

The aim of this assignment is to familiarise students with issues pertaining to the development and implementation of corporate social responsibility (CSR) strategies.

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this assignment, you will:

• Understand underpinning principles of corporate social responsibility
• Appreciate the integrated nature of environmental, health and safety, social and economic performance aspects in the organisational agenda
• Recognize the importance of transparency, accountability and stakeholder engagement in promoting corporate social responsibility.
• Be familiar with the notions of materiality and sustainability / corporate social responsibility reporting and the Global Reporting Initiative guidelines

Brief Part A

Provide an overview of the concepts of corporate social responsibility and sustainability reporting. Sustainability reporting is a voluntary instrument at present. Assess the costs and benefits of making it compulsory. Integrate into your discussion at least 3 refereed journal articles¹. (Indicated word limit 1000 words)

Refereed journal articles are articles published after they have been reviewed by other scientists, knowledgeable in the field of inquiry, to determine whether the studies they describe are of reasonable quality and the conclusions reported are supported by the evidence. Reputable scientific journals use a process of peer review before accepting a paper for publication. You can access such articles through the University of Greenwich Library Databases and Electronic Information Resources. Such CSR/sustainability report can be located online in an official corporate website and you should include the link for downloading the report at the beginning of Part B of your assignment.

Part B

Identify ¹ two recent Corporate Social Responsibility reports of two UK companies. Compare and discuss (up to 1000 words) how environmental and social issues form the Corporate Social Responsibility strategy of the organisations. Particular emphasis should be placed on the reporting of Health and Safety and Covid-19 issues within the CSR reports.

General Instruction

The work is to be word-processed, double or 1.5-line spacing Arial or Calibri, 12 Font, aligned to the left hand of the page and appropriately referenced using the Harvard system of referencing. The length must not exceed 2000 words, excluding appendices, bibliography, etc. A word count must be included.

All assignments must be submitted electronically using the Turnitin plagiarism service through Moodle (even where a hard copy is required by your local centre). In the correct Moodle course, click on the Assignment folder; Assignment Submission; identify and click the correct assignment link and then follow the instructions.

There are a number of centres offering this programme so you must ensure you submit in the correct folder or your assignment may not be marked.

You may also be required to submit a hard copy to your local centre. Your local centre will tell you whether or not a hard copy is required to be submitted. Assignments will not be marked unless they are submitted electronically.

Assessment

This coursework accounts for 50% of the course marks. It will be assessed on the basis of:

Submission

Submission date:- This assignment will normally be submitted 12 weeks after the study school but check online or with your Centre for exact dates. Work submitted late will not be marked unless a formal extension of time has been granted.

Plagiarism and Copying

It is not acceptable to copy other student’s coursework or material directly from your sources of information. This is plagiarism. If you copy material it will be highlighted by the Turnitin system that is used for on-line submissions. The copied content will not be marked and you may be referred to the Plagiarism Panel and will be awarded a zero mark. Your final mark transcript will also show that you have been penalised for submitting plagiarised material. We will ignore small matches associated with common phrases and terms and will ignore matches highlighted in your reference list when considering whether or not your work is plagiarised.

As a general rule you should aim to get your similarity index into the “green” zone on Turnitin. If you are in the “amber” zone you will need to look very carefully at your work to see what you can put into your own words to reduce your score. High amber scores may be referred to the plagiarism panel and will certainly mean that a significant part of your work will not be considered in the marking. If you are in the “red” zone you will be referred to the plagiarism panel. We strongly advise you to submit a final draft through Turnitin well before the cut-off date to check your similarity index. Please remember that you are only allowed to submit one draft version of your coursework every day so leave yourself plenty of time to revise and resubmit your final version of the coursework.

Sample Answer – Do Not Copy, It`s Plagiarised!

Understand underpinning principles of corporate social responsibility

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is a concept where businesses integrate social and environmental concerns into their operations and interactions with stakeholders. It is based on the idea that companies have obligations beyond generating profit for shareholders. CSR focuses on how businesses contribute positively to society, reduce negative environmental impacts, and engage in ethical practices. This concept is increasingly tied to sustainability reporting, a framework through which companies disclose their environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance.