Advice partnership Continuum has received an accreditation for its environmental, social and governance practices.
The adviser was awarded the accreditation by ESGmark, which aims to demonstrate an organisation’s commitment to the environment, their clients, employees and communities.
Continuum is one of three organisations in the financial services industry to receive the accreditation, which the firm described as an “important milestone”.
Martin Brown, managing partner at Continuum, said: “The process to achieve the accreditation involved a thorough assessment of Continuum’s ESG credentials.
“It entailed a review of our practices and way of working, covering factors such as how Continuum seeks to reduce its environmental impact, how we operate an equal opportunities policy and seek to have a positive impact in the communities in which we operate.”
The ESGmark was founded by two colleagues in the UK investment industry who sought to simplify 'sustainability' and provide action points for firms seeking to make changes towards a fairer, more sustainable future.
The accreditation's mission is to educate firms on ESG matters and promote their credentials to consumers.
According to Brown, Continuum’s client feedback showed ESG was becoming ever more important to them, and the firm was already seeing growth as a result of the accreditation.
He added: “The ESG mark is an overwhelming endorsement of the culture of our business and how we engage with our people and our clients.”
Brown also said the firm’s ESG credentials underpinned his plans for growth with new adviser recruitment planned for this year, after the firm saw client numbers rise 11 per cent year-on-year in 2020.
He said: “We have seen growing numbers of high calibre experienced advisers approach us from a range of competitors and our marketing team continues to attract significant numbers of new clients through our direct marketing and national network of professional introducers.
“This has led us to set ambitious growth objectives for 2021.”
Brown added that the firm’s focus was to recruit experienced advisers with a track record of building long-term client relationships.
chloe.cheung@ft.com
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