Aberforth Smaller Companies Trust PLC.
ASL.LSE | Trusts, funds and similar financial entities
Aberforth Smaller Companies Trust PLC is a United Kingdom-based investment trust. The Company's investment objective is to achieve a total return for shareholders from investment primarily in a portfolio of smaller United Kingdom quoted companies. It invests in a diversified portfolio of securities ...Show More
Better Health for All
0
Aberforth Smaller Companies Trust PLC is an investment trust whose principal service is investment management. This core business has no direct positive or negative health impact, making most health-related KPIs not applicable. While the company invests in various sectors, including food producers, pub operators, and gaming operators, the provided articles do not offer specific quantitative data on the health impact, safety records, accessibility, or mitigation efforts of these investee companies. Therefore, for KPIs where the company's direct operations are not relevant, a score of 0 (Not Applicable) is assigned. KPIs requiring specific quantitative data on investee companies' health-related activities or revenue shares, which is absent, are omitted.
Fair Money & Economic Opportunity
0
Aberforth Smaller Companies Trust PLC operates as an investment trust, focusing on investing in small-cap UK companies to achieve financial returns for its shareholders.
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The company does not engage in direct lending, microloans, or banking services to consumers.
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It lacks specific strategies for promoting equitable financial services or targeting underserved communities with financial products.
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Consequently, the company does not offer consumer credit products, manage customer finance data, or operate financial service access points.
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Therefore, KPIs related to direct consumer financial services, such as APRs, fee structures, revenue from high-cost products, financial literacy programs, customer credit outcomes, debt burden, geographic inclusion, and product simplicity, are not applicable to its business model.
5
Fair Pay & Worker Respect
0
The provided articles describe Aberforth Smaller Companies Trust PLC as an investment trust that integrates ESG principles, including fair pay and worker respect, into its investment and engagement strategy with portfolio companies
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. The Trust uses an ESG module to gain insights into its investee companies' practices and engages with them to drive positive change
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. However, the articles do not provide any specific data or metrics regarding Aberforth Smaller Companies Trust PLC's own direct workforce, such as living wage coverage, pay ratios, safety incident rates, or employee engagement scores. Therefore, no KPIs can be scored based on the available evidence.
Fair Trade & Ethical Sourcing
-10
As an investment trust, the company does not directly engage in manufacturing or sourcing raw materials, meaning KPIs related to fair trade certification, supply chain traceability, and high-risk materials are not applicable to its direct operations.
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For its direct operations and service providers, no incidents of forced child labor or modern slavery have been reported, and the company states it has no known issues relating to human rights or modern slavery matters.
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It also has a supplier code of conduct that communicates high standards of responsible business practice.
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The Management Engagement Committee meets annually to appraise and review its key service providers, indicating annual audits for tier-1 suppliers.
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Honest & Fair Business
20
Aberforth Smaller Companies Trust PLC's board is entirely composed of independent directors.
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The company maintains a zero-tolerance anti-bribery and corruption policy, which is regularly audited.
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For whistleblowing, policies exist at its Investment Manager and Frostrow for staff to raise concerns related to the Company in confidence, and the Board gains assurance on these procedures, with no concerns raised during the year.
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Kind to Animals
0
Aberforth Smaller Companies Trust PLC is an investment trust, and its core business model does not involve direct operations related to animal welfare, such as product manufacturing, animal testing, animal husbandry, or sourcing animal-derived ingredients. While the company integrates ESG considerations into its investment process
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and tracks ESG data for its investee companies
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, the provided articles contain no specific data or details regarding animal welfare practices, certifications, or policies of either Aberforth itself or its underlying portfolio companies. Therefore, all KPIs related to direct animal welfare impact are classified as N/A.
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No War, No Weapons
-50
Aberforth Smaller Companies Trust PLC is an investment trust whose strategy aligns with avoiding direct involvement in weapons production.
1
However, the company has indirect exposure to the military sector through its holdings, including Avon Technologies, which is a top 30 investment and supplies military protection products.
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There is no evidence that the company has divested any of these defense-related assets.
Planet-Friendly Business
-20
The company's investment portfolio report, as of end December 2024, is TCFD aligned.
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It includes comprehensive climate scenario analysis, covering low, medium, and high climate change scenarios for 2020, 2030, and 2050, and implied temperature rises for well below 2°C, 2°C, and 3°C.
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The report also quantifies climate-related financial risks through Climate VaR projections and Earnings at Risk, and discloses a 3.98% exposure to fossil fuels and 2.83% to coal activities within the portfolio.
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Aberforth Partners LLP, the investment manager, integrates ESG analysis, including TCFD and net-zero/science-based targets, into its investment process
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and reports on its own Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions.
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Respect for Cultures & Communities
0
Aberforth Smaller Companies Trust PLC is an investment trust, and the provided articles do not contain specific, concrete data points for the company itself regarding its direct respect for cultures and communities. While one article mentions a portfolio company, Antofagasta PLC, is involved in respecting communities and indigenous groups, this does not represent Aberforth's direct actions.
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Another article, a general ESG statement, notes that specific initiatives related to cultural heritage or indigenous rights are not highlighted for Aberforth.
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Information from other articles pertains to unrelated entities (Wye Agricola Club, Hilton Foods) or general financial reporting without relevance to the specified KPIs for Aberforth.
Safe & Smart Tech
10
The company provides users with strong control over their personal data, including options to accept, reject, or manage cookie usage, and the ability to withdraw consent via privacy settings or a privacy dashboard.
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Users also have rights to request copies of their personal data, correct inaccuracies, object to processing, withdraw consent, request suspension or deletion of data, and request data transfer to another controller.
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The company states it complies with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA).
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It also confirms compliance with legal and regulatory requirements related to shareholder information
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and conducts anti-money laundering and "Know Your Customer" checks.
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The Board receives quarterly compliance reports to evidence adherence to rules and regulations.
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Zero Waste & Sustainable Products
0
No specific, concrete data points are provided in the articles regarding Aberforth Smaller Companies Trust PLC's (ASL.LSE) own waste management, product recyclability, packaging sustainability, or other zero waste and sustainable product initiatives. The company is an investment trust, and the articles focus on its ESG integration into investment processes and engagement with investee companies, rather than its direct operational waste or product lifecycle metrics.
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