'RISK ASSESSMENT & DUE DILIGENCE

Key Activities This Year

Forced labour

We continue to closely monitor developments in relation to allegations of forced labour in the Xinjiang Autonomous Region (XUAR) of Western China. During 2020/21, our Cotton Sourcing Policy was updated to include a ban on the use of cotton from the XUAR. We do not directly source products from the XUAR at Tier 1 (product factory), Tier 2 (subcontractor to a Tier 1) or Tier 3 (fabric/yarn suppliers and spinners). Our work to ensure that products made or sourced for NEXT are free from forced labour is undertaken by our COP team and covers Tier 1 and 2 suppliers. Traceability of our full supply chain is a key area of focus given we do not directly source raw materials. We are working closely with our suppliers and industry stakeholders to find the most effective and accurate ways to trace our supply chain to Tier 5 (raw materials). We also work collaboratively with relevant NGOs and multi-stakeholder initiatives such as the Ethical Trading Initiative and the British Retail Consortium to share knowledge of challenges and solutions. We continue to map the raw material sources of our suppliers to provide confidence that the materials used in our products are sourced responsibly in line with our 2025 Responsible Sourcing Strategy.' - 7