Home/Sustainability
Keep what is there. Measure what you build.
Our approach is deliberately unglamorous: retain structures where they are sound, reduce demand before adding technology, and report the numbers we said we would hit.
Position
Fabric, then plant, then offsets
The largest carbon decision on most of our sites is whether the existing structure comes down. We test retention on every acquisition before we test anything else.
Where a frame, facade or substructure is sound, keeping it usually saves more carbon than any specification upgrade we could make afterwards. Where it has to go, we reuse what we can on site and record what left it.
After that the order is fixed: reduce demand through fabric and form, then size plant for the reduced demand, then look at renewables. Offsetting is the last line, not the strategy.
Standards we work to
| Embodied carbon | Assessed at appraisal on every site |
|---|---|
| Structural retention | Tested before demolition is priced |
| Operational energy | Modelled in use, not just to Part L |
| Heating | Heat pumps or heat network. No new gas |
| Biodiversity | Net gain delivered on site where possible |
| Water | Rainwater harvesting to landscape |
| Construction waste | Diversion from landfill reported monthly |
| Post-occupancy | Reviewed at twelve months |
In practice
What this looks like on site
Prince’s Court, Southampton
An existing concrete frame retained and strengthened, with four new floors above. Modelled embodied carbon saving of 32% against new build.
Barrack Yard, York
Reclaimed brick from the demolished depot used across every elevation of the completed courtyard scheme.
Hayes Gasworks
Ground treatment phased with delivery so that remediation happens immediately before each phase, not all at once.
Foundry Lane, Leeds
Connection to the local district heat network agreed at planning stage rather than designed in later.
Old Wharf, Bristol
Cross-laminated timber upper floors above a concrete podium, reducing frame weight and foundation loads.
Perivale Works
A courtyard podium garden providing biodiversity net gain on a site that had no permeable surface at all.
A building that is cheap to run and still standing in sixty years is the sustainability strategy. Everything else is detail.
Akcel — sustainability position