Fair Money & Economic Opportunity

WH Smith PLC, as a retailer, does not offer consumer lending or deposit services, making most KPIs related to financial products not applicable. For wealth building outcomes, 641 of its approximately 14,000 employees participated in the HMRC-approved Save-As-You-Earn share option scheme as of August 31, 2024, allowing them to acquire company shares on favourable terms.

This represents 4.57% of employees. While the company made £1,082,500 in community investments in 2024, this is general charitable giving and not considered 'community finance reinvestment' as defined by the rubric for financial institutions. The company also provides UK employees with access to free financial education through Salary Finance.

Honest & Fair Business

WH Smith PLC overstated profits by approximately £30 million in its North American business for the year to August 2025 due to a revenue recognition error.

This led to a near-40% share price fall, the resignation of its chief executive officer, and delayed full-year results. The UK's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) opened an investigation on November 19, 2025, into potential breaches of UK Listing Principles and Rules and Disclosure and Transparency Rules. The company has a comprehensive whistleblowing policy, updated in November 2025, which applies to all businesses and colleagues. It provides multiple reporting channels, including an independent, confidential, 24/7 hotline (Safecall) available to employees, agency staff, third parties, suppliers, and business partners. The policy commits to non-retaliation and accepts anonymous reports. During the year, 164 issues identified through worker representative councils across 26 supplier factories were successfully addressed and remedied. WH Smith maintains a robust anti-corruption policy with zero tolerance for bribery, corruption, or extortion, requiring compliance with the UK Bribery Act 2010 from employees, suppliers, subcontractors, consultants, and agents. The policy prohibits excessive gifts and mandates annual re-appraisal of its Code of Business Conduct, with mandatory e-learning for employees in high-risk areas.

Kind to Animals

WH Smith PLC's policy states that beauty and household products should not be tested on animals, unless products are also sold through other retailers and/or testing is required to comply with local market regulations.

This policy, approved by the Board in January 2024 and revised in January 2025, applies to all companies within the group structure and franchise operations.

No War, No Weapons

WH Smith PLC maintains a policy of zero procurement from a comprehensive list of restricted countries, including active conflict zones, and prohibits cotton sourcing from specific high-risk regions.

The company's Responsible Sourcing Standards are based on the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights , and it is a member of the United Nations Global Compact. Suppliers are expected to adopt due diligence for conflict minerals in accordance with OECD Guidance. The Board approves these sourcing standards and its ESG Committee reviews audit reports annually. Given its retail business model, the company has no defense or arms-related activities, no dual-use technology, and is not subject to Arms Trade Treaty declarations. Its ethical red lines are focused on labor practices, not weapons.

Safe & Smart Tech

WH Smith experienced a data breach in March 2023, affecting personal data (names, addresses, National Insurance numbers, dates of birth) of approximately 10,000 current and former UK employees.

The company disclosed the incident, launched an investigation, and notified affected individuals and authorities. The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) is investigating. The company's IT Service Desk is certified to ISO27001 and the Cyber Essentials Plus Scheme. WH Smith states it complies with UK/EU GDPR, UK DPA 2018, PCI DSS, and CCPA, and reported no significant fines for non-compliance in its 2024 reporting period. Customer data is normally retained for six years. Users have comprehensive rights including access, rectification, erasure, restriction of processing, data portability, and objection, as well as opt-out options for marketing and data sharing. The company's authentication methods include usernames, passwords, and security questions, with no mention of multi-factor authentication.

Zero Waste & Sustainable Products

WH Smith achieved a 100% waste diversion rate for its continuing business in 2025, 2024, and 2023.

The company ensures 100% of pulp, paper, and timber in trade and non-trade products purchased during 2025 came from certified sources or recycled materials , and its bottled water ranges are sold in 100% recycled plastic bottles. The company has a target to reduce waste material and minimize own-brand plastic packaging by 2025 against a 2020 baseline. It implements several waste reduction initiatives, including reusable skips, a dry mix recycling system, waste separation, and food waste reduction strategies like stock control, discounting, and partnership with Too Good to Go. All forestry and paper suppliers must meet Sustainable Forests Policy standards, requiring materials from recycled or certified sources. The company reported no significant waste disposal violations or fines in the 2024-2025 reporting period. Circular design principles are adopted for some popular consumable items such as bottled water and coffee cups. Customer education includes recycling instructions on much of its packaging and in-store/website signage for electrical component recycling.