UK Stewardship Code
We are proud members of the UK Stewardship Code - recognised globally as a best practice benchmark in investment stewardship.
The UK Stewardship Code sets high stewardship standards and is built around 12 principles of effective stewardship. It was updated in 2021 with a greater emphasis placed on transparency standards around stewardship activities than the 2012 code it replaced.
This year, the report takes on a new format, in line with the changes to the UK Stewardship Code which came into effect in January 2026.
Rather than a single report, signatories can now choose to create two smaller reports – one being an Activities and Outcomes report, which must be submitted annually, and the other being a Policy and Context Disclosure, which must be submitted at least every four years.
We’ve chosen to adopt the format of two reports. One of the other main changes is that there are fewer and more streamlined principles, with the introduction of targeted principles for different asset classes.
We’ve also chosen to move to the October reporting window in place of our usual April timing. This follows some major changes in our investment approach which we implemented in 2025 and which mean it makes sense to defer our report by a few months in order to provide a full year’s worth of coverage on the new approach rather than report on companies and strategies which we no longer hold or manage.
Investing thoughtfully for the long term
As long-term investors, we take our stewardship role seriously and appreciate we have a duty to represent our clients values as we build relationships with company management and investor relation teams.
These actions can have significant influence and help to build support for the adoption of best practice across the market over time. A number of case examples from investee firms have been included within this year's report to showcase these in practice.
We hope this report demonstrates the importance of stewardship and engagement throughout Castlefield, and goes someway to explain why we're known as The Thoughtful Investor ®.
