The UK Net Zero Carbon Buildings Standard is the UK’s first cross-industry standard for net zero carbon aligned buildings. A pilot version was published in 2024 and, following pilot testing in 2025, the full Version 1 is launching early this year
The Standard has been developed and agreed through collaboration between built environment organisations and industry leaders spanning architects, engineers, carbon assessors, developers, and more.
In 2022, leading organisations the Better Buildings Partnership, BRE, the Carbon Trust, CIBSE, IStructE, LETI, RIBA, RICS and UKGBC joined forces to champion this initiative.
Over 350 experts from across the industry have provided support and input during the standard’s development phase. Insights have also been captured from over 700 additional industry professionals through wider stakeholder engagement and feedback, including roundtables and public consultation.
The free-to-access technical Standard will enable the built environment to robustly prove that built assets align with the UK’s carbon and energy budgets, using an agreed methodology for defining what “net zero carbon” means for buildings in the UK. The Standard provides a set of rules to create robustness and consistency around such claims.
The pilot version
The pilot version was released in September 2024 and contained the technical details on how a building should meet the Standard, including what limits and targets it would need to meet, the technical evidence needed to demonstrate this and how it should be reported.
The UK built environment industry was encouraged to use the pilot version to prepare for the process of verifying buildings as net zero carbon aligned and to provide feedback to the Standard.
The Pilot Testing Programme
Between April and August 2025, the pilot version was applied to 205 projects (representing 134 owners) taking part in a Pilot Testing Programme.
The Pilot Testing Programme was open for applications from all buildings within the UK, encompassing a wide range of typologies and sectors. Participants were invited to include projects at various stages of development – from early design through to post-construction.
The projects submitted included both best performing and typical representative buildings, even if these were not expected to meet the ambition of the Standard.
Pilot projects included: King Charles III Sacristy at Westminster Abbey; Hamilton House, a Grade II Listed heritage office building for Dorrington; Lyde Green School for South Gloucestershire Council; Theatr Clwyd in Flintshire; Postal Street Housing for Manchester City Council; and logistics hubs for Greenbox and Panattoni UK.
The pilot testing process was focused on the usability and clarity of the Standard in practice, as well as the industry’s level of readiness to adopt it. The Standard’s verification methodology is not yet available, meaning none of these projects have yet achieved verification, but their participation has supported the Standard to test and streamline its process, ready for projects to sign up for verification once it is launched early in 2026.
Participants trialled applying the Standard on their projects and during this process took part in an in-depth technical survey and structured technical forums, in which they engaged directly with the standard’s Technical Steering Group.
Participants also had access to self-governing peer-to-peer groups to facilitate knowledge sharing and support collaborative problem solving. The process was used to gather feedback and experiences of applying the Standard to buildings across sectors and building types.
Feedback from the pilot testing
The Pilot Testing Programme was run by Amrita Dasgupta Shekhar, head of ESG and net zero at Greengage Environmental.
She noted that: “The pilot demonstrated that a single industry Standard for defining and verifying net zero carbon buildings is both necessary and workable in practice. Engagement across the sector showed a strong understanding of credible performance and highlighted specific refinements needed for Version 1.”
Feedback showed the Standard to be ambitious but essential to the real estate sector’s net zero transition, with participants citing the importance of high-quality data in an evidence-based approach.
Wide-ranging technical feedback was received on the pilot version, which has been taken on board in drafting Version 1, including in the development of an annex to support communication of progress at practical completion.
Through the forums, participants shared valuable learnings from application of the Standard, including the importance of design team communication and collaboration at an early stage and well-defined responsibility boundaries to support achievability.
Following the close of the pilot testing, the feedback was analysed, collated and shared in the standard’s December 2025 Pre-Launch Update, as well as being incorporated into the development of Version 1, ensuring the standard will reflect the real-world insights shared ahead of the launch.
New annexes will be published as part of Version 1 on: Delineation, Deeming to Satisfy (formerly known as “Equivalence”) and an optional validity check at Practical Completion. The standard’s section on Verification will also be fully updated to detail the process, and how users will be able to communicate their Net Zero Carbon Aligned status.
Supporting resources also planned for publication include guidance for existing and heritage buildings, guidance for the legal profession on how to incorporate the standard into contracts, and further graphics and videos to support understanding and use of the standard.
Through continued engagement across our industry, Version 1 will successfully position the standard as a trusted benchmark for assessing net zero carbon progress across the built environment.
Making use of the standard in planning
The standard can be used to support implementation of climate change mitigating planning policies, but this must be done in a considered way.
The RTPI and the TCPA recently published an update to their joint guidance on planning for climate change, which includes a section on how the UK Net Zero Carbon Buildings Standard can be used to support such policies.
Pilot Case Study
Lyde Green School
Pilot participant: BAM
Designed to create a comfortable, energy efficient learning environment, Lyde Green School exemplifies sustainable design principles. The cross laminated timber (CLT) frame helps to deliver a low embodied carbon building, achieving approximately 530 kgCO2/m2 upfront embodied carbon.
Operational carbon is also minimised through the Passivhaus design, which incorporates triple glazing, enhanced insulation and airtightness, heat recovery ventilation and air source heat pumps to deliver a target energy use intensity of 54 kWh/m2/year.
“Early engagement is key,” said Helena Bennett of BAM.
“The project was midway through construction at the time of the pilot testing commencing, which meant most design decisions relating to the requirements were fixed and a couple of the mandatory requirements were not achieved (though despite this, most were!).”
The Passivhaus design helped to achieve and improve upon the operational energy limit, or Energy Use Intensity (EUI), by a notable margin. Delta Q also created a PHPP plug-in to convert the Primary Energy Renewable (PER) figure into an EUI figure – this provided a quick and simple method for reporting against the requirements.
The project is expected to improve upon the embodied carbon limit in the Standard, despite there being no embodied carbon limit/target in the original project brief.
The CLT frame helped to achieve low upfront carbon despite higher transport emissions compared with typical concrete/steel alternatives. This is evidence of the capability to deliver low embodied carbon whilst also achieving superior energy performance.”
Pilot Case Study
38 Finsbury Square
Pilot testing participant: L&G
38 Finsbury Square in London is a prime grade A office refurbishment, designed to be suitable as a single occupier HQ building or for multiple tenants on a floor-by-floor basis.
The project is targeting BREEAM Outstanding, NABERS Design for Performance (4.5*) and to be in line with the standard’s requirements. It is also implementing a materials passport strategy for in-scope new and existing materials/products/systems.
Malcolm Hanna of L&G said: “As the Standard goes further and includes limits and requirements beyond previous industry net zero guidance and benchmarks, a whole team briefing should be done when the Standard is adopted onto a project to ensure everyone understands the standard’s scope.”
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