Beyond Net Zero: our science-based targets

A science-based target is an emissions reduction goal defined by climate science with the aim of preventing the worst impacts of climate change. These targets show companies how much and how quickly they need to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions in order to be consistent with keeping global warming well below 2°C. 

The Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) is a global body, enabling businesses to set ambitious emissions reduction targets in line with the latest climate science. It is focused on accelerating companies across the world to halve emissions before 2030 and achieve net-zero emissions before 2050.

Scope 1 covers emissions from sources that an organisation owns or controls directly – for example, using fossil fuels for heat. Scope 2 covers emissions that a company causes indirectly and comes from the energy it purchases and uses, for example, the emissions caused when generating the electricity we use. Scope 3 encompasses emissions that the organisation is indirectly responsible for up and down its value chain, such as employee commuting.

Each year, we track our progress against these targets using data we collect in our five offices. The most recent analysis was completed in early 2024, looking at our 2023 usage. The graph below shows we’re on track to meet our Scope 1 and 2 reduction targets overall, despite the number of people in the practice increasing, from 219 to 2019 to 282 in 2024. 

Our two largest offices, London and Edinburgh, are currently in the process of decarbonising. In London (an 1850s former piano factory), we have worked with our landlord to have a new heating and ventilation system plus improved glazing and insulation installed in 2025. In our relatively new (2009) Edinburgh office, we plan to install a heat pump to eliminate gas usage and reduce emissions. Like Bristol, our Manchester office is moving to a larger, fossil-fuel-free space in 2025. In terms of our Scope 3 emissions, we plan to improve our data collection methods to get a clear picture of the contributing factors, and we’ll continue to encourage sustainable modes of transport and prioritise working on projects close to our offices wherever possible.  We will differentiate between battery electric vehicles (BEV) and internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles in our commuting surveys as some rural staff make use of an EV to complete commutes to train stations, and up to now we have recorded emissions for these journeys as equal to ICE vehicles.