11 A Pentland Centre Research & Impact Digest, 2025 Modern slavery reporting Research on modern slavery reporting practices in the UK by Dr Mahmoud Gad and Professor Steve Young reveals significant gaps in corporate disclosure. Analysing 100 London Stock Exchange-listed companies, they found that only 37% identify emerging labour issues, and 12% provide long-term plans for addressing modern slavery. While 72% file statements in the Modern Slavery Registry, many are outdated or difficult to access. Key areas of concern include a lack of information on due diligence, risk assessment, and effectiveness measurement. Only 39% of companies report KPIs with a rationale, and just 25% disclose results against KPIs. Moving forward, Centre researchers aim to enhance reporting quality by promoting best practices, emphasising forward-looking disclosures, and encouraging integration of modern slavery considerations into mainstream business risk assessments and board-level discussions. AI and modern slavery reporting This research leverages AI to enhance modern slavery reporting transparency and accountability. Dr Gad and Professor Young developed a proof-of-concept app that automates the scoring of company disclosures against a best practice framework. This AI-driven approach provides companies with instant disclosure scores. Centre researchers plan to further develop the app to provide actionable improvements. Future developments include fine-tuning the language model, incorporating a way to interpret graphs and maps, and enhancing the evaluation template. This innovative application of AI streamlines the reporting process and empowers stakeholders to drive meaningful change. During her PhD, Dr Amy Benstead, now a Senior Lecturer at the University of Manchester, collaborated with Pentland Brands’ Corporate Social Responsibility team. The project developed tools aimed at addressing modern slavery within the company’s supply chain. Modern Slavery Addressing Modern Slavery Tools to address modern slavery in supply chains: training, review of purchasing practices, risk matrix Targeted audit protocol for detecting modern slavery Development of Pentland Brands, first modern slavery statement Two reports setting the foundation for innovative, engaged research on complex and sensitive issues Research into collaborative relationships NGOs Other brands & retailers Pentland Brands The research contributed to the development of the world’s first national standard on modern slavery. BSI Standard Organizational Responses to Modern Slavery: Guidance (BS 25700), launched at House of Lords, January 2023
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