BREEAM Updates: Everything you need to know
Over the past year, the UK has seen two key updates to BREEAM – as well as a government review on net zero. For individuals working in sustainability for the built environment, these updates are important to consider when completing a BREEAM Assessment. So, for a comprehensive yet easy-to-understand explanation, keep on reading...
Written by
Joe Clough and Dan Skelton
Graduate Sustainability Consultants
To contact please email:
joe.clough@mainer.co.uk or dan.skelton@mainer.co.uk
Let’s start with the key BREEAM Updates...
The first of these relates to amendments to BREEAM’s minimum target rating; the second, meanwhile, is in relation to the UK’s updated new building regulations, and thus focuses on BREEAM’s technical manual – otherwise known as BREEAM UK New Construction Volume 6.
Similarly, the British Research Establishment (BRE) – which is the organisation that established the BREEAM methodology – has recently been involved in the UK government’s Net Zero Review. This review has highlighted consequential recommendations, whilst providing informative details regarding the practicalities of utilising BREEAM to achieve net zero goals.
BCO updates its ‘Guide to Specification’
The British Council of Offices (BCO) has released an early update to its ‘Guide to Specification’ by strengthening its sustainability targets, which includes an upgrade to its recommended minimum BREEAM target rating for newly built offices. The guide, which is a widely known and respected publication, provides advice to professionals within the built environment sector for how they can create healthier office spaces – whilst reducing carbon emissions.
The minimum BREEAM target rating has now been upgraded from ‘Very Good’ to ‘Excellent’. This is due to the significant progress that the construction industry has made in adopting more demanding sustainability goals.
A BREEAM rating of ‘Very Good’ puts a building in the top 25% of new commercial buildings in the UK; however, a building with a ‘Excellent’ rating puts it in the top 10% of the UK’s new commercial buildings – a significant increase – making the building increasingly attractive to investors, whilst also decreasing carbon emissions.
BREEAM UK New Construction Version 6
In August 2022, the latest version of BREEAM UK New Construction – Version 6 – was released following updates to building regulations in England. This update enables new buildings in England that use the latest version of Part L (the 2021 edition) to register and complete BREEAM UK New Construction Assessments. Those buildings using the previous version of Part L (the 2013 edition) in England, however, must remain registering and completing assessments using BREEAM UK New Construction 2018.
In Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland, meanwhile, buildings can register and complete assessments utilising either BREEAM UK New Construction 2018 or BREEAM UK New Construction Volume 6.
The changes from BREEAM UK New Construction 2018, albeit limited, affect the assessment of:
Ene 01 – Reduction of energy use and carbon emissions
Hea 02 - Indoor air quality.
For a detailed breakdown of these changes, see below:
BREEAM and the Net Zero Review
In 2023, the UK government’s Net Zero Review highlighted the practicalities of achieving net zero ambitions – and how BREEAM can help. Within the review, the UK government emphasises the scale of the net zero challenge; in response, BRE – the organisation which runs BREEAM, and which helped to organise the review – stated that this aligns with arguments that they had been making for some time.
For example, the review emphasises the importance of establishing a governmental framework to respond to net zero, whereby local authorities can support in the net zero transition by providing data. Similarly, the review stresses the necessity of government policy supporting energy saving measures, and, likewise, it additionally addresses the gap in the planning system relating to net zero; thus, the government has promised a consultation on updating the National Planning Policy framework.
So, how can BREEAM help?
BREEAM is a methodology which provides significant advantages, with many elements already aligned with the UK government’s Net Zero Review. It provides robust measurements, whilst helping to minimise carbon emissions at the asset level – which is a critical foundation for the final steps to net zero carbon.
For example, when considering the points discussed above relating to the review, BREEAM possesses elements which are already in alignment with these suggestions. For example, the establishment of a framework to respond to net zero, with the utilisation of sustainability-orientated data, could be inferred to already be included within BREEAM’s methodology.
Likewise, BREEAM already promotes energy saving measures, such as energy efficient equipment and materials, and, moreover, it aims to help in reducing carbon emissions from the built environment, thus aiding in addressing the gap between the UK’s current planning system and net zero. Indeed, BREEAM states that its standards are “designed to focus on decarbonisation and carbon emissions more than any other sustainability issue”, consequently highlighting the framework’s importance in the transition to net zero.
How can Mainer Associates help you with BREEAM?
Here at Mainer Associates, we have a wealth of experience completing BREEAM Assessments for a diverse portfolio of buildings across the UK.
As BREEAM’s guidelines and frameworks continue to evolve, our team of dedicated and specialist sustainability consultants maintain a deep knowledge of BREEAM in order to provide detailed answers to clients’ queries, and to maintain efficiency on any BREEAM project.
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