The Responsible Jewellery Council (RJC) today announced that Aurum Holdings, the largest prestige watch retailer and one of the largest luxury jewellers in the UK, has achieved certification meeting the ethical, human rights, social and environmental standards as established by the RJC's Member Certification System.

"The RJC is delighted to congratulate Aurum Holdings on becoming the sixth jewellery retailer to be certified by RJC. The successful verification assessment of Aurum Holdings Ltd was conducted by SGS, one of the independent third party auditing firms accredited to the RJC's Member Certification System. The certification of Aurum Holdings is a noteworthy advance in RJC UK member certification," says Michael Rae, RJC's Chief Executive Officer.

"This is a significant independent validation of our continuing efforts in the areas of good corporate citizenship, responsible retailing and employee welfare and well being. As well as reinforcing consumer confidence in the jewellery products Aurum provides, it endorses the already strong reputation for quality that Aurum has amongst its many loyal customers and we are delighted to be at the forefront of the jewellery sector, alongside global businesses such as Cartier and Chanel as accredited members," says Richard Gerrard, Aurum Holdings Commercial Director.

About RJC

The Responsible Jewellery Council is an international not-for-profit organisation bringing together more than 300 member companies committed to promoting responsible ethical, human rights, social and environmental practices in a transparent and accountable manner throughout the jewellery industry from mine to retail. Their commitment aims to reinforce consumer and stakeholder confidence in diamond, gold and platinum metals jewellery products. The Council has developed the RJC Member Certification System, a certification system - which will apply to all Members' businesses that contribute to the diamond, gold and platinum metals jewellery supply chain. All Commercial Members of the RJC are required to be audited by accredited, third party auditors to verify their conformance with the RJC's Code of Practices and become certified under the RJC Member Certification System. A full list of its Members can be found on the web at www.responsiblejewellery.com.