Ethical supply chains
This report responds to a critical gap in the construction sector: the absence of a mature market for ethically traded materials. While industries such as food and textiles have established ethical supply chains, the built environment has yet to demonstrate comparable demand or transparency. It represents the first cross-discipline collaboration of Built Environment Declares (BED) signatories.
While Modern Slavery is widely recognised within industry frameworks, Child Labour remains a distinct and often overlooked risk. Most Child Labour occurs outside conditions of coercion and therefore falls beyond typical Modern Slavery due diligence, creating a significant blind spot within construction supply chains. This report seeks to address that gap.
Built Environment Declares is a global network uniting the built environment in declaring a climate and biodiversity emergency and committing to meaningful action. This work extends that commitment by recognising that environmental responsibility must also include human rights.
Developed in partnership with HACE, a specialist organisation dedicated to eradicating Child Labour, the report combines industry collaboration with expert insight to support practical, child-centred action across supply chains.