UKGBC launches new framework
The UKGBC (UK Green Building Council) has launched a new framework designed to support the reduction of carbon emissions in the built environment. The Whole Life Carbon (WLC) Framework aims to support implementing low-carbon initiatives across a building’s lifecycle, while also helping to guide projects toward net-zero aligned outcomes.
The free resource offers practical guidance as to how organisations can minimise whole life carbon emissions within the built environment, from the project's inception through to end-of-life. Essentially, whole life carbon is the sum of all greenhouse gas emissions associated with a building, from material extraction and construction, the use of the building, and finally to its demolition and disposal. According to the UKGBC, the framework is designed to be approachable and accessible, consisting of four overarching principles and four delivery principles, supported by sub-principles and lifecycle-based actions to implement at each stage of a building project.
The framework builds upon the Net Zero Carbon Framework Definition, which was launched by UKGBC back in 2019. The WLC goes further, providing guiding principles and actions to help organisations minimise whole life carbon and manage residual emissions.
Yetunde Abdul, Director of Industry Transformation at UKGBC, explains: “Reducing whole life carbon emissions is essential to creating a more resilient and future-ready built environment. As expectations around sustainability and carbon performance continue to grow, organisations need practical tools that support consistent and informed decision-making across the full lifecycle of buildings. This updated framework is designed to help drive industry-wide action by supporting better design making, strengthening accountability and embedding whole life carbon thinking into projects from the outset.”[i]
Philippa Birch-Wood, Head of Climate Action at UKGBC, adds: “Whole life carbon must become a core consideration in every building project if the sector is serious about delivering net zero. This updated framework provides practical guidance to help organisations reduce emissions, strengthen accountability and make better carbon decisions from the earliest stages of development.”
UK’s first Net Zero Carbon Buildings Standard launched
The latest UKGBC announcement follows the launch of the UK’s first Net Zero Carbon Buildings Standard (NZCBS) earlier this year.
The product of several years of development and testing, the NZCBS will enable the built environment to prove that assets are decarbonising in line with the UK’s carbon and energy budgets. The voluntary and free-to-access standard has been developed through collaboration between several key industry groups including the Chartered Institute of Building Services Engineers (CIBSE), the Carbon Trust, RICS, and the UK Green Buildings Council (UKGBC). Its development has involved testing on more than 200 projects, alongside input from over 350 industry experts.
Until the launch of the Standard, there had been no single agreed methodology for defining what ‘net zero carbon’ means for buildings in the UK. The new standard ‘Version 1’ provides a set of consistent rules designed to create a level playing field, and builds on a Pilot Version released in September 2024.
The standard contains the technical details on how a building should meet its requirements- this includes the limits and targets it needs to meet, the technical evidence needed to demonstrate this, how it should be reported, how it must be verified, and the ways its verified status can be communicated. Further, it covers both embodied carbon (emitted directly or indirectly as construction takes place) and operational carbon, generated when the building is in use.
References
[i] New framework to help reduce and manage carbon emissions launched by UKGBC | UKGBC
