“Our journey to net zero is underpinned by an ongoing six step process, designed to challenge and test our existing practices to ensure we are removing as much carbon as we can from our operations. It begins by educating and upskilling our workforce so that they can enable our strategy, we then measure and remove embodied carbon from our processes, followed by measuring and removing operational carbon. We also focus on identifying and implementing appropriate renewable energy solutions before offsetting any residual carbon and of course disclosing this to our stakeholders.
“The functional changes we have already implemented as a result of this process are undoubtedly having a huge impact on our carbon emissions. Over the last ten years we have achieved a 62% reduction in carbon dioxide equivalent emissions from a variety of strategic initiatives. These include improving the energy efficiency of our offices, reducing waste and increasing recycling and using responsible construction methods. We have also actively sought ways to reduce the use of fossil fuels throughout the business. Our company car scheme for example has been overhauled with the introduction of more electric and fuel-efficient vehicles, whilst on site we have recently switched to using HVO fuel in all generators and telehandlers. The latter is a new change, but we expect to achieve a CO₂e reduction of up to 90% when compared with traditional diesel.
“As we continue to work towards net zero housing, we are also focussing on building design and materials to ensure that the homes we build use as little energy as possible. We know that domestic housing accounts for around 20 per cent of UK greenhouse gas emissions so as housebuilders we are responsible for creating homes of the future. Homes that are well insulated, use clean or renewable fuels and are built using materials that have as little embodied carbon as possible.
“Undoubtedly, delivering net zero housing comes with many challenges, but we are confident that through close collaboration with our supply chain it will be achieved. By working together, sharing innovations and understanding where improvements can be made, we can change the nature of construction and ensure that our homes leave a positive impact on the world around us.”
