Priority three
Impact
Understanding our impact is essential to delivering our strategy and driving societal change which makes a difference to the lives of animals. Being impact-driven, focused on the outcomes which most affect animals, will help us understand our progress towards our goals and the steps we need to take to deliver on our ambitions for animals. This must become central to our culture as an organisation to make sure we are prioritising the work we need to do to have the greatest impact. Measuring and demonstrating our effectiveness as an organisation is key to ensuring we are using our resources effectively and sustainably to make the biggest difference to the greatest number of animals.
We need to be impartial, open and honest about the decisions we are taking and collaborate with others to be as effective as possible for animals. Being able to demonstrate impact is also crucial for policy makers and shapers, and funders, so is essential to help us drive up financial support and advocate for change.
The threats facing wildlife are significant, with human impacts from climate change, pollution, construction and land use eroding their habitats, food supply and wellbeing. Some wild animals are the victims of deliberate harm, such as trapping, poisoning or being hunted or even unintentional harm such as being injured by traffic. Wildlife deserves better protection. Existing laws are failing wild animals - they are piecemeal, complicated and inconsistent. They focus on illegal acts, such as trapping or taking wildlife, rather than the harm caused to wild animals. We want to see all wildlife properly protected under one piece of legislation in the way that the Animal Welfare Act offered much better protections for pets in 2006.
Our current work focuses on improving the welfare of animals in the wild, in captivity or trade as well as the direct rehabilitation of wildlife and supporting partners like vets and rescue centres to care for sick and injured wild animals. We will continue this vital work and commission an external review to define how operational and advocacy work aligns, to achieve the greatest impact for the greatest number of wild animals.
We will also be developing and implementing our Environmental Plan, Climate change and nature loss are already having a real and potentially devastating impact on animal welfare and we have set out our commitments to reducing our environmental impact and building our resilience to the impacts of climate change.
Essential to this priority is updating our approach to data and insight, using, recognising, leveraging and optimising the latest evidence to make decisions. Making the right decisions will lead to the right outcomes to allow us to achieve our bold ambitions for animals. This will be underpinned by digital systems which allow people to access the information they need, when they need it, to aid decision making and drive better animal welfare outcomes. We will support a cultural shift in the organisation to improve our understanding and use of data.
We are committed to the welfare of wildlife, which includes exotic animals kept as pets. We want to be better able to articulate our vision for wildlife and the role we should play through advocacy, prevention, direct care and working in partnership with others so we can use our expertise and skills where we can make the most difference.
How we build
A stronger future for animal welfare
Insight
We will update our impact framework and our decision-making framework to allow our people to make timely decisions, based on the latest data and insight, to drive better outcomes for animals
continuous improvement
We will update our approach to data and insight with new systems and processes to give people access to the most up-to-date data and analysis when they need it.
greater understanding
We will review our wildlife strategy to understand how we can achieve the greatest impact for wild animals.
REDUCE CLIMATE IMPACT
We will reduce our climate change impact, strengthen our resilience to climate change, and increase our positive impacts, while reducing our negative impacts on nature.
Research
We will commission animal welfare and behaviour change research to provide evidence to the sector and move the debate on animal welfare forward.
A focus on
Environmental sustainability
As the largest and most influential animal charity in the UK, the RSPCA must lead the way on being a sustainable and responsible organisation. The environmental focus of our new Environmental, Social and Governance Plan sets out our ambitions in two key, intrinsically linked areas: climate change and nature (including biodiversity), focussing on our direct activities and across our value chain, and where we can use our influence to leverage positive impact (e.g. partners, communities, supporters).
Climate change and habitat loss is already having a devastating impact on animal welfare and it is essential that we mitigate our own impact in these areas as well as shoring up our resilience to the impacts of climate change. To do this, we will commit to reaching net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2050 from a 2023 base year, in line with science. We will proactively managing climate related risks throughout our operations and supply chain.
We will also work to increase positive impacts and reduce negative impacts on nature and biodiversity by managing our centres’ land and activities, such as creating wildlife-friendly areas to support nature and enhance animal and people well-being. Alongside this, we will increase the efficiency of our water use, reduce waste generation and explore alternatives for waste disposal. We will work with partners to increase our impact and influence in these areas.