Modern Slavery Act

INTRODUCTION

We, at the Talon Group of companies, including Talon Outdoor Limited, Evolve OOH Limited, and all other subsidiaries of Talon Group, collectively referred to as “Talon”, want to ensure that we do our part to contribute to a kinder, fairer and just planet. This policy outlines our commitment to implementing and enforcing effective systems and controls to ensure modern slavery is not taking place in our own business. We have an expectation of the partners within our supply chains to ensure that they do the same and Talon will not knowingly engage with any person or organisation suspected of being involved in modern slavery or human trafficking in any form.

OUR BUSINESS

Talon is an independent group specialist media agency operating in the out-of-home advertising sector.  We work with a variety of partners such as advertisers, advertising agencies and media owners to deliver industry leading advertising campaigns across a range of formats for our clients and partners. While the group is headquartered in the United Kingdom, we have offices in various locations across the world where we provide services across local and international markets.

RESPONSIBILITY

Talon’s values of Human, Bold, and Smart reflect our deep respect for human rights and the dignity of all people. We take a proactive, zero‑tolerance approach to ensuring that modern slavery and human trafficking do not occur within our organisation or supply chains. Our People Handbook, Modern Slavery and Human Rights Policy, and all other related Talon policies and mandatory training modules reinforce this commitment by providing clear guidance on identifying and reporting risks of forced labour, servitude, or trafficking.

Talon is a service-based organisation and recognises that modern slavery and human trafficking can occur in all industries, including professional services and digital supply chains. We consider it everybody’s responsibility to remain conscious and vigilant. We measure our effectiveness through clear performance indicators, including 100% completion of mandatory annual training for all employees, due‑diligence checks and risk assessments for all suppliers. These measures are reviewed regularly to ensure continuous improvement in preventing and addressing modern slavery and human trafficking.

OUR SUPPLY CHAIN

Whilst we cannot control the actions of other businesses, we have established strong, long-term relationships across our entire supply chain and hold our partners who work with us accountable to ensure they have appropriate anti-slavery and human trafficking policies and processes in place. We understand that modern slavery is not a static issue and therefore we are committed to continuing our efforts to raise awareness of the impact of slavery.

POLICIES

Talon’s People Handbook, together with our Modern Slavery and Human Rights Policy, Anti‑Bribery Policy, Whistleblowing Policy, and Business Conduct Standards sets out our unequivocal zero‑tolerance stance on modern slavery and human trafficking.

This includes:

  • A clear prohibition on slavery, servitude, forced or compulsory labour, bonded labour, child labour and any form of human trafficking.
  • Specific definitions and examples of human trafficking and exploitation.
  • Responsibilities for all employees and contractors to report any suspicion of trafficking or exploitation, regardless of whether it occurs inside or outside our direct operations.
  • Escalation procedures and protection measures for whistle‑blowers, ensuring confidentiality and no retaliation.
  • Disciplinary policies detailing consequences of policy breaches, including contract termination and reporting to authorities.

TRAINING

Upon joining Talon employees will be required to complete mandatory Modern Slavery training within the first 3 months of their employment. Existing employees will be required to complete this training on an annual basis. Employees will be notified of any changes to this policy.

SINCE WE LAST REVIEWED OUR MODERN SLAVERY ACT STATEMENT:

In line with our legal obligations, we ensure our website contains the latest copy of our Modern Slavery Act statement. In addition to this, we review our People Handbook and the Handbook for Contractors regularly to ensure compliance with requirements set out in the UK Modern Slavery Act 2015. To ensure our employees are effectively trained and are able to identify any form of modern slavery and human trafficking and help combat it, we regularly review our training programme and look to bolster our offering at every opportunity, be that formally or informally.

STEPS TAKEN IN THE REPORTING YEAR 

Policy Development and Governance

  • Updated our Modern Slavery and Human Rights Policy to reflect evolving best practices for our workforce.
  • Embedded ethical sourcing principles into our Supplier Code of Conduct, and our standard supplier contracts.

 Risk Assessment and Due Diligence

  • Implemented enhanced due diligence procedures for new suppliers and hold records of risk with internal compliance team.

Training and Awareness

  • Rolled out mandatory training modules on modern slavery awareness to all employees which repeats and updates annually.

Supplier Engagement and Audits

  • Engaged directly with key suppliers to communicate our expectations and have embedded modern slavery clause and termination rights for modern slavery involvement.

Reporting and Whistleblowing

  • Strengthened our whistleblowing mechanisms, ensuring employees and suppliers can report concerns confidentially to [email protected]

LOOKING AHEAD

In the next financial year, we are committed to:

  • Extending our supplier audits to any new regions/acquired businesses.
  • Conduct a comprehensive risk mapping exercise to identify high-risk suppliers and regions.

 

This statement is published in accordance with the UK Modern Slavery Act 2015 for the year ended 31 December 2024 and will be reviewed by the Board of Directors and updated on an annual basis. This statement is approved by the Board of Directors and signed by Sue Frogley, Global CEO.