A news item featured in the Falmouth Packet recently, revealed that Fox Construction Solutions – who are building the new Sports Hub in Boscawen Park, Truro (funded through Truro Town Deal) – has become the first main contractor in the United Kingdom to be awarded B Corporation status.

Based at Perran Foundry, in Perran-ar-worthal (between Falmouth and Truro) they join only “a handful of construction companies globally that are B Corp certified”. Check out this article on the Packet’s website for the full story.

“the B Corp community in the UK is the largest and fastest-growing in the world, with over 2,500 companies spanning a range of different industries and sizes….including the Guardian, St Eval, Patagonia, Finisterre, Tony’s Chocolonely, Ward Williams, The Big Issue, and Rodda’s”.

Readers will recognise some other local companies in this list, based here in Cornwall.

The Observer carried an in-depth article about B Corp status this month, which details the demanding criteria that companies now have to be meet to achieve certification:-

The strict ethical criteria are:

• purpose and stakeholder governance
• fair work
• justice, equity, diversity and inclusion
• human rights
• climate action
• environmental stewardship, and circularity
• government affairs and collective action

You can find more information about B Corp standards at https://bcorporation.uk

This is all very positive news; and congratulations must go to Fox Construction Solutions on their achievement.

It’s interesting to note that the vast majority of the organisations achieving B Corp status are medium and small enterprises. Why is this? The answer probably lies in the criteria, and in para 2 of the Observer article, which reminds us that participating companies are

“legally committed to serving all its stakeholders, not just making as much profit as possible for shareholders”

Perhaps it’s time to revisit E.F. Schumacher‘s book (1973) – Small is Beautiful – which advocates moving towards smaller, more ethical enterprises, which prioritise community needs over more economic growth.

Transition groups support and promote the contribution that local small-scale/medium-sized enterprises are making to develop community-based, sustainable, solutions to resource depletion and tackling climate change.