It's important to have a Social Responsibility Policy because no business is an island. We all operate in a local community, and we all have responsibilities to our customers, other users of our service, our suppliers and the environment.

Here at Niggle we've had a sit-down, and thought about the kind of business we want to be, and this is the result. If you have comments on it, we'd love to hear from you at responsibility@niggle.co.uk.

1. We believe in furthering the cause of environmental sustainability

We intend to be here for the long-term and help our customers to be profitable long into the future. Sustainability is about maintaining business growth and profitability whilst using natural resources efficiently and without damaging the environment.

Niggle gives customers a feedback channel to make suggestions to businesses about improving their sustainability, with the potential to accelerate businesses' recognition of the importance of sustainability to their customers.

2. We believe in buying sustainable products from responsible suppliers

When purchasing physical goods we use local suppliers wherever possible, in order to minimise the environmental damage caused by transport.

We will not exploit or otherwise harm any people or animals in the provision of our service.

We are looking for ways of moving towards using 100% recycled paper (currently more difficult than you might imagine) but in the meantime we use recyclable paper from sustainable sources. We minimise packaging and waste.

We ask all our suppliers about their ethical and sustainable credentials and use this as a factor in selecting suppliers. We talk to our suppliers regularly about improving our and their sustainability.

3. We make a difference in our community

All of our people are actively encouraged to be involved in voluntary programmes in their local communities such as Young Enterprise or youth campaigns such as Make your Mark.

4. We treat our suppliers fairly and with respect

We understand that other businesses' sustainability and profitability can depend upon our actions. We pay creditors within an agreed timeframe and always make every effort to honour our commitments to suppliers. We will not take advantage of any business that is relying on us to deal with them in a fair and honest way.

We buy on 'best value' rather than just on price and we consider multiple factors in our purchasing decisions, which include suppliers' ethical credentials and their sustainability.

5. We support the Non-Profit sector

We offer favourable rates to the not-for-profit sector. If yours is a not-for-profit business (such as a sports club), a Social Enterprise or a Community Interest Company (CIC), please email us at nonprofit@niggle.co.uk for details of discounts especially for you.

6. We respect our customers

We treat our customers openly and fairly. We try to write all our material in plain English, without hiding anything in the "small print".

We will not use pressure selling techniques and we don't take advantage of the vulnerable.

We openly invite criticism and feedback from our customers, and we listen to suggestions and will try our best to resolve every complaint we receive. We are all about collaboration, feedback and continuous improvement.

7. We respect our employees

We look after our employees, and enable and equip them to carry out their roles in safety and to their best ability. We believe happy people make a happy and successful company. We believe in training and development, and we believe in work-life balance and flexible working and will always look for ways of making things work better.

We will consider seriously any requests for internships and work experience at Niggle – please email work@niggle.co.uk if you would like to be considered.

We aim to be a fair employer with an open and transparent recruitment process. We are committed to equality of opportunity in relation to race, gender, disability, religion, belief, sexual orientation and age. We value diversity in the workplace.

See our Work for Us page to get an idea of the unique company culture that we aspire to.