Our Data Sources
Every Nitvar report is built from publicly available, verifiable data — not estimates, not AI guesses. We pull from authoritative UK and international sources:
Companies House
Filing history, director changes, confirmation statements, accounts, and compliance status.
Environment Agency
Environmental permits, pollution incidents, enforcement notices, and waste management records.
Health & Safety Executive
Workplace incidents, improvement notices, prohibition notices, and prosecutions.
Gender Pay Gap Service
UK government's gender pay gap reporting database for qualifying employers.
News & Media
Recent news coverage analysed for ESG-relevant events: controversies, awards, announcements.
Company Disclosures
Annual reports, sustainability statements, and ESG disclosures published by the company.
The Three Pillars
We assess every company across the three standard ESG dimensions, each weighted to reflect their relative materiality for UK SMEs and mid-market companies:
Impact on the planet
- Environmental permits held
- EA enforcement history
- Carbon / net zero targets
- Sustainability policy disclosed
- Waste & emissions incidents
- CDP disclosure (if applicable)
Impact on people
- HSE violations & notices
- Gender pay gap reporting
- Employee satisfaction signals
- Modern slavery statement
- Community & charity activity
- Diversity disclosures
How the company is run
- Companies House compliance
- Filing timeliness & accuracy
- Board composition & diversity
- Director disqualifications
- Anti-corruption / bribery policy
- Ownership transparency
Scoring & Grading
Each pillar is scored out of its maximum points based on available evidence. Scores are aggregated into a composite 0–100 total and converted to a letter grade:
| Grade | Score Range | What It Means |
|---|---|---|
| A | 80–100 | Strong ESG performance. Proactive disclosures, clean regulatory record, good governance. |
| B | 65–79 | Above average. Minor gaps but no significant red flags. Suitable for most purposes. |
| C | 50–64 | Average. Some concerns or gaps in disclosure. May require further investigation. |
| D | 35–49 | Below average. Notable issues present. Recommend enhanced due diligence. |
| F | 0–34 | Poor ESG performance. Significant red flags, enforcement history, or major disclosure failures. |
What We Don't Do
- We do not fabricate or estimate data — if a data point isn't publicly available, it's recorded as "Not disclosed"
- We do not weight companies differently based on sector without disclosure
- We do not accept payment to improve scores
- We do not use AI to generate factual claims — AI is used only for synthesis and formatting
Limitations
Our reports are research documents based on publicly available information at the time of production. They have the following limitations:
- Small private companies often have limited public data — scores may reflect disclosure gaps rather than poor performance
- Data from government sources may lag by 6–12 months
- News sentiment analysis is based on English-language sources only
- Sector-specific benchmarks are indicative, not peer-reviewed
⚠️ Important: Nitvar reports are research documents and do not constitute financial, legal, or investment advice. They should be used as one input among several in any due diligence or decision-making process. All data is sourced from publicly available records. Nitvar is not responsible for decisions made on the basis of our reports.
See the methodology in action
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