Industry-led UK Net Zero Carbon Buildings Standard pilot launched

We joined forces with leading organisations such as RIBA, LETI, CIBS, UKGBC, the Carbon Trust, and others to shape the initiative, which provides a single definition of what constitutes a net zero carbon building and how this should be evidenced and reported.

The UK Net Zero Carbon Buildings Standard is a free-to-access technical standard that will enable the built environment industry to prove that built assets align with the UK’s carbon and energy budgets. Until now, there has been no single, agreed methodology for defining what ‘net zero carbon’ means for buildings in the UK. 

The Standard is for anyone who wants to fund, procure, design, or specify a net zero carbon building, and for anyone who wishes to definitively demonstrate that their building is net zero carbon aligned. It covers all major building sectors, including new build and existing buildings.

It has been developed and agreed through collaboration between more than 350 built environment organisations and industry leaders, lending their expertise to task groups covering different sectors. Principal Sustainability Consultant, Ingrid Berkeley, contributed to a group on operational energy, Director, Colin Darlington, to culture and entertainment, Principal Engineer, Hareth Pochee, to schools, and Director, Mark Palmer, to sports and leisure.

The Standard’s mandatory requirements for building performance and construction quality have been described as 'ambitious but achievable'. They cover a range of topics such as upfront carbon, operational energy use, fossil fuel-free, renewables and refrigerants.

The pilot version contains the technical details on how a building should meet the Standard, including what limits and targets it needs to meet, the technical evidence needed to demonstrate this, and how it should be reported. Details on the subsequent verification process will be published separately.

The built environment industry is being encouraged to use the pilot version to prepare for the process of verifying buildings as net zero carbon aligned.

Hareth Pochee, Principal Engineer, said: "Having been involved in the process for developing some parts of the UK Net Zero Carbon Buildings Standard we're excited to see the overall outcome, that is, the pilot document; in particular how it works in practice for issues such as operational energy targets, embodied carbon targets, peak load targets and carbon offsetting.

"A key strength of the Standard is that it is being developed collaboratively between these and many other influential and respected industry organisations. We are very pleased to have been involved - we believe that UK Net Zero Carbon Buildings Standard is a vital component of the UK's toolkit needed to reach net zero carbon.”