This Modern Slavery and Transparency in Supply Chains Statement (“Statement”) is made in accordance with section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 (the “Act”) for the financial year ended 31st December 2020. The Statement is made by Simplyhealth Group Limited (company number 05445654) on behalf of itself, Simplyhealth Access (company number 00183035) and Denplan Limited (company number 01981238). This Statement is reflective of their practices. (together “Simplyhealth”).
This is the fourth statement made by Simplyhealth since the Act came into force and reports on the efforts made to mitigate the risks of modern slavery in line with the requirements of the Act.
This Statement sets out the steps that Simplyhealth continues to take to prevent modern slavery and human trafficking in our business and supply chains. The second report of the independent review of the Act launched by the Home Office in July 2018 recommended that the content of companies’ reports be made more consistent. We have considered the information contained in this Statement including the order of this Statement and have amended this to ensure that our corporate structure and business is included as a standard introduction.
Simplyhealth supports the proposed changes outlined in the public consultation “Transparency in Supply Chains”, these being: publication of our statement on a central Government registry; a single reporting deadline; mandating the information to be included in our Statement; and civil penalties for failures to comply.
Simplyhealth Group Limited is the parent company of Simplyhealth Access and Denplan Limited.
Simplyhealth Access is the UK’s leading health cash plan provider, providing access to everyday healthcare. Simplyhealth is a trading name of Simplyhealth Access, which is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority.
Denplan develops, sells, and administers dental payment plans which are sold by dentists to their patients.
Simplyhealth’s purpose is to improve access to healthcare for the many, for the long term. We make accessing healthcare easier for millions of people in a sustainable way that delivers long term impact.
We arrange insurance based health plans that help people access and get funding for healthcare. We also provide charitable giving and colleague volunteering to help local and national healthcare charities that support adults and children in accessing healthcare.
Since 1872, we’ve been helping people make the most of life through better everyday health. Our plans make sure individuals, families and employees can easily access in- person and virtual wellbeing services, and afford to stay healthy by claiming costs back on dental treatments, visits to the optician, complementary therapies and more.
Our health plans also provide 24/7 video GP appointments, 24/7 counselling support and advice, cover for routine prescription costs, video physiotherapy assessment and virtual healthcare treatments.
We provide direct to the consumer, via corporate employee benefit schemes, or by health practitioners themselves.
Our Board of Directors is committed to the eradication of human trafficking and modern slavery in our supply chains and has overall responsibility for ensuring that Simplyhealth complies with its legal and ethical obligations. Our Board of Directors receives updates on the nature and requirements of the Act, and the impact on our group.
We maintain a clear internal governance structure at both operational and leadership levels. Our senior leaders (in conjunction with our procurement function) remain responsible for engagement with our modern slavery processes and procedures.
We continue to tackle modern slavery and human trafficking by educating and informing our employees, making clear commitments, progressing against those commitments and owning the challenges faced. This Statement is once again written in the spirit of transparency; it acknowledges that while we have progressed, we are committed to continually improving our practices as there are still areas on which we need to work.
Simplyhealth remain registered with the Home Office contact database to receive reporting guidance and resources. In reviewing our approach, we have had regard to the latest governmental guidance.
Like most businesses, we have had to adjust our ways of working as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. During our last financial year Simplyhealth withdrew from the veterinary market. Other than as set out above, our operations have not undergone any material change since the last Statement, and while Simplyhealth continues to require compliance with the Act from our suppliers by the use of clear terms and conditions in supplier contracts and pre-contractual checks, there has by necessity, been limited modification in our approach.
All of our policies and procedures remain under review and adaptable to any changes in risks faced by Simplyhealth.
Simplyhealth continues to source goods and services for internal operations, our business customers and consumers from suppliers on our Approved Supplier List (“ASL”).
Suppliers are added to the ASL following successful completion of Simplyhealth's standard supplier pre-contractual checks. By way of a checklist within our control framework, we can evidence that appropriate programmes are in place to manage the risk of modern slavery and human trafficking; this requirement extends to ensuring that our suppliers have similarly appropriate arrangements through the use of standard supplier terms and conditions, which contain a modern slavery compliance provision. This is in addition to our Modern Slavery Act Supplier Request Form, which requests details regarding a supplier’s arrangements to prevent modern slavery in its organisation and supply chains. Simplyhealth has, during the last financial year, adopted a Corporate Social Responsibility Statement which is being rolled out across all suppliers which confirms the values that suppliers must share. We believe that effective procurement at Simplyhealth includes ethical, socially responsible behaviours in all supplier interactions including:
Our procedures help minimise and mitigate against the risk of modern slavery occurring within our business and supply chains.
Our 2020 assessment did not identify any areas of concern and confirmed that we have proportionate practices in place relative to the risk of slavery and human trafficking occurring in our business or supply chains.
Despite our business being self-assessed as low risk in respect of modern slavery and human trafficking, we repeatedly assess the risk of such practices occurring in our business and our supply chains through our procurement processes. We review our process with reference to Home Office guidance, and focus on recruitment, use of agency and temporary workers, on- boarding of new employees and terms and conditions.
Simplyhealth is not heavily reliant on third party suppliers; in recent years Simplyhealth’s decreased reliance on external supply has reduced our overall risk. We continue to rely on some outsourced services and are aware that there are modern slavery and human trafficking risks in these supply chains. Wherever possible we seek to purchase these goods and services from large, global suppliers; our procurement function undertakes due diligence on new suppliers regardless of size or global presence. It is hoped that by compliance with, and promotion of, the Act we will play our part in influencing all suppliers in the way they manage their supply chains.
As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic the original timescales for progressing the risk assessment of worldwide services used by our customers have had to be revised.
This risk assessment will have particular reference to the provision of treatment provided by partners providing worldwide dental injury and dental emergency cover, which affects our Denplan business.
To evaluate the effectiveness of the measures we are taking, our process owners are responsible for modern slavery and human trafficking engagement, and publicising this across the group. We have maintained a framework for organisational accountability, to allow our people, and others, to raise issues, make suggestions, voice grievances and report suspected or actual modern slavery or human trafficking. We have raised awareness internally of the risks of modern slavery and human trafficking, and highlighted the requirements of the Act and its objectives, together with our procedures to ensure compliance.
For the period covered by this statement, Simplyhealth did not receive any reports of modern slavery within its business or its supply chain.
We maintain our aim to map our supply chains for goods and services assessed as potentially higher risk, with reference to the Global Slavery Index in order to ensure that our zero tolerance approach to modern slavery and human trafficking is understood throughout both internal business and our supply chain.
Approved by the Board of Simplyhealth Group Limited on 27 July 2021.
Dr Sneh Khemka
Chief Executive Officer
27 July 2021