This statement is published pursuant to section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 and constitutes the Educate Ventures Research Ltd. (EVR) Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking Statement. It sets out the steps taken to ensure that modern slavery is not present in our business and its supply chains.

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EVR is a research and consultancy organisation specialising in artificial intelligence in education. We are a small organisation with a UK-based team, and our turnover falls below the £36 million threshold that defines a relevant commercial organisation under section 54 of the Act. We publish this statement voluntarily, in the interests of transparency and good practice.

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Our business is UK-based and our supply chains are correspondingly limited in scale and complexity. They consist primarily of professional services (researchers, consultants, and associates engaged on specific projects), technology and software providers, and small-scale office and administrative suppliers. We do not procure physical goods at scale, and we have no manufacturing or overseas production supply chains. For the purposes of this statement, the term "modern slavery" encapsulates slavery, servitude, forced or compulsory labour, and human trafficking. The policy is reviewed annually.

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Our policies on modern slavery

We will not tolerate modern slavery in our supply chains or in any part of our business. We are committed to ensuring that there is transparency in our own business and to tackling any modern slavery in our supply chains. We expect the same standards from our suppliers and contractors. A code of ethics and values, set out in our Employee/Operational Handbook, is issued to all staff and reflects our commitment to ethical business practice.

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Due diligence and steps taken to eliminate risks

We have employment policies and practices designed to limit the risk of modern slavery within our supply chain. Our procurement process requires suppliers and subcontractors to provide information on modern slavery risks where applicable, and all supplier and subcontractor contracts reference the UK government's modern slavery guidance and the standards we expect them to meet, alongside environmental sustainability and ethical credentials where relevant. Supplier responses to these contractual requirements are reviewed by senior management before engagement is confirmed, and any supplier who falls short of the requirements is not engaged. We are aware of our duty to notify the relevant authorities should we suspect any use of modern slavery in our supply chain or subcontracting arrangements, and we will do so.

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Risk areas and how we manage them

Given the nature of our business, our principal exposure to modern slavery risk sits within our engagement of subcontracted researchers, consultants, and associates, rather than in the procurement of physical goods. We manage this risk by contracting directly with individuals or their registered businesses, verifying right-to-work status before engagement begins, and requiring written acceptance of our modern slavery contract terms as a condition of engagement. Our technology and software suppliers are predominantly established UK and international providers with their own published modern slavery statements, which we review as part of supplier onboarding where a supplier meets the relevant turnover threshold. We have identified no evidence of modern slavery risk in our current supply chain, and we treat any change in the scale or geography of our supply chains as a trigger to reassess this position.

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EVR has a clear framework of rules and behaviours and encourages the reporting of any concerns or breaches so that they can be dealt with appropriately in accordance with our policies and procedures. We provide a whistleblowing avenue for staff, including interns, to raise concerns confidentially and anonymously, through line management or senior management, according to the preference of the staff member. Our Employee/Operational Handbook also provides staff with a secure way of seeking advice about any modern slavery or human trafficking issues personally affecting them or their families.

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We check that staff can demonstrate their eligibility to work in the UK, and we require all contractors and agency staff to undergo an eligibility check before commencing work with us. We also seek confirmation from interns that they have eligibility to work in the UK if they wish to work here physically. This does not apply to remote work.

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Measuring our effectiveness

We measure the effectiveness of these policies against three indicators: the proportion of active suppliers and subcontractors who have returned a completed modern slavery declaration prior to engagement (currently 100%), the number of concerns raised through our whistleblowing channel relating to modern slavery or human trafficking (none to date), and completion rates for staff training on ethics and compliance. We review these indicators annually, alongside a wider review of the effectiveness of our policies and procedures, in October of each year, and use the findings to inform any changes to our approach for the following year.

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Training

Employees are trained on an ongoing basis on topics relating to ethics and compliance, among others, through monthly "Everybody Learning All of the Time" sessions. We will continue to identify ways to improve employee and supplier awareness to eliminate modern slavery from our business and supply chain, and will continue to keep abreast of information on global risks in modern slavery.