Chapters Financial – with the help of its new online arm SaidSo.co.uk – has reduced its carbon emissions by almost a quarter in the last 12 months following certification to The Planet Mark.

Surrey-based Chapters Financial, a chartered firm of Financial Planners and Independent Financial Advisers, achieved a 22 per cent reduction in its comparative carbon emissions between June 2014 and June 2015, according to figures released by The Planet Mark, the certification programme operated by Planet First in partnership with the Eden Project.

The firm, which operates from offices in Guildford and Woking, was first certified to The Planet Mark in 2011. The latest analysis shows:

- A big fall in the company’s footprint due to a 14 per cent reduction in electricity usage, which accounts for 50 per cent of the company’s emissions.
- Business travel, which accounts for 7.5 per cent of the firm’s carbon footprint, saw a 29 per cent fall in combined diesel and petrol tailpipe emissions.
- Total carbon emissions dropped 22 per cent per employee on a like-for-like basis.

Keith Churchouse, director of Chapters Financial, said: “We’re delighted Chapters Financial has once again achieved this certification. We work very hard as a team to monitor and improve our carbon footprint. This includes car sharing, energy saving computers and printers, paper recycling, and encouraging our clients to receive information from us via email rather than in the post. Running a sustainable business is important to us and we aim to improve year-on-year.”

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Steve Malkin, chief executive of Planet First, provider of The Planet Mark, said: “It’s a testament to Chapters Financial’s commitment to sustainability that the company has achieved such an impressive fall in its overall carbon footprint. Chapters Financial is a small firm of financial advisers showing real leadership on sustainability in the financial sector through The Planet Mark certification.”

As part of its drive to provide a more sustainable and cost-effective service to its clients, Chapters Financial this year launched Saidso.co.uk, an online service providing direct financial planning advice to private individuals.

Keith Churchouse explained: “Being an online-only financial planning service, SaidSo.co.uk is a great example of how to run an environmentally-friendly company. This year has really seen the coming of age for the innovation of online financial advice with SaidSo winning several awards in recognition of this. We’re very proud of its progress to date and its contribution towards the Chapters Financial Planet Mark certification.”