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Integrating sustainability early supports planning certainty, reduces risk and protects programme and cost outcomes.
A strong sustainability strategy also enhances scheme viability, aligning environmental performance with commercial goals to unlock funding and meet investor expectations. Beyond compliance, it drives occupier value by creating healthier, more attractive, future-ready places. Our cradle-to-grave approach means sustainability principles inform decisions from early land appraisal through planning, design, delivery, occupation, adaptation and end of life.
Why Choose Brookbanks for Sustainability
As a multidisciplinary consultancy and trusted development partner, we see the bigger picture and support our clients at every stage. We align environmental responsibility with social value and commercial performance to create positive spaces and places that people want to live and work in.
Sustainability delivers the greatest impact when it supports commercial objectives rather than competes with them. From a focused energy assessment for a single building to a portfolio-wide net zero strategy, our sustainability experts work alongside our planning, engineering, cost and delivery specialists so that every decision is practical, costed and deliverable. We look at sustainability in the round, across technical, commercial and operational requirements, rather than treating it as a standalone compliance exercise.
Key Client Benefits
- Our cradle-to-grave approach means sustainability principles inform decisions from early land appraisal through planning, design, delivery, occupation, adaptation and end of life.
- Our sustainability and building performance advice is connected to every aspect of a project, from planning and engineering to cost, delivery and long-term asset value.
- Early integration of sustainability supports planning certainty, reduces risk and protects programme and cost outcomes.
- In-house qualified assessors and advisory professionals provide end-to-end certification support, helping clients achieve targeted ratings efficiently.
- We balance regulatory compliance with lifecycle cost, operational efficiency and occupant wellbeing, so that buildings perform as intended in practice as well as on paper.
- We look for value enhancement in our sustainability advice, combining carbon reduction with healthier buildings, social value and stronger long-term asset value.
Specialist Services
Strategic Advice and Planning Support
Our strategic and early-stage sustainability services help clients build sustainability into project planning, investment strategy and long-term asset performance from the outset. We assess sustainability risks and opportunities and identify regulatory requirements early, including certification targets such as BREEAM, WELL and DREAM, the Future Homes Standard and local authority planning requirements. Site appraisals, whole life carbon, lifecycle cost and operational performance analysis then inform acquisition decisions and help clients define sustainability targets with practical implementation strategies.
For planning applications, we prepare Sustainability and Energy Statements, Net Zero Carbon feasibility studies, heat network and district heating feasibility studies, climate change adaptation statements, and Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) scoping inputs and chapters. Clear, well-founded evidence of this kind helps clients align proposals with sustainability, energy and climate resilience objectives and progress smoothly from submission to approval.
Design, Delivery and Certification
Carrying sustainability objectives through design and construction is what turns targets into measurable performance. Our support covers low-carbon energy strategies, building services and systems design, and material selection with a focus on durability, adaptability and circularity. We help project teams balance capital cost with whole-life value, so that buildings are compliant, cost-effective and capable of delivering real-world performance.
With in-house qualified assessors and Advisory Professionals (APs), we provide end-to-end support for BREEAM, DREAM, WELL, LEED and Fitwel certification. Our own specialists deliver the technical reporting behind the credits, including energy, thermal modelling, air quality, internal acoustics and external noise, helping clients meet complex requirements and achieve their targeted ratings efficiently.
See how our specialists supported Millfield Green in Caddington, recognised as the UK’s first regulated net zero carbon retirement community.
Building Performance and Energy
From concept design through to operation, performance-led analysis informs energy strategies, supports certification and helps clients achieve measurable reductions in carbon emissions and energy consumption. Our services include net zero carbon and energy strategy development, NABERS UK certification, building performance and dynamic thermal simulation using IES VE, operational energy modelling to CIBSE TM54, and overheating risk assessments to CIBSE TM59 and TM52 and Part O of the Building Regulations.
We also provide Part L compliance modelling, Standard Assessment Procedure (SAP) assessments and Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) at Levels 3, 4 and 5. Façade analysis, design option appraisal, daylight modelling, renewable energy feasibility studies covering solar photovoltaic (PV) and wind, indoor air quality and comfort assessment support, and energy audits complete the service, helping buildings achieve their intended performance throughout their lifecycle.
Read our insight on the move from SAP to the Home Energy Model.
Whole Life Carbon, Circularity and ESG
Understanding carbon across the entire asset lifecycle helps clients make better-informed decisions. We undertake Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and Whole Life Carbon (WLC) analysis, including assessments and reporting that comply with Greater London Authority (GLA) and Department for Education (DfE) requirements, and develop carbon reduction strategies and decarbonisation pathways that weigh cost and buildability alongside carbon. At end of life, our pre-demolition and pre-refurbishment surveys identify circularity opportunities, and our demolition and deconstruction strategies prioritise material recovery and reuse.
For organisations, we translate sustainability ambitions into clear, measurable actions through sustainability masterplanning, portfolio-wide strategies, net zero and carbon reduction pathways, and the development, implementation and reporting of environmental, social and governance (ESG) strategies. Applying circular economy principles helps clients retain asset value and reduce waste, while sustainability-led exit strategies, including certification credentials for waste and disposal, can enhance marketability.
Operation, Occupancy and Performance in Use
Knowing how a building performs in practice is the starting point for improving it. We undertake Post Occupancy Evaluations (POE), including those required under BREEAM, the NHS and the Department for Education’s Building Performance Evaluation, as well as wider occupancy and performance evaluations that help optimise building services and usage patterns. These insights help clients improve internal environments, reduce energy demand and operating costs, and enhance user satisfaction across their portfolios.
Occupant feedback also shapes maintenance, replacement and refurbishment programmes that align with decarbonisation pathways. Our pre-refurbishment and maintenance sustainability appraisals, together with monitoring and optimisation strategies, support employee wellbeing, retention and productivity, and the lessons learned feed into future developments in a cycle of continuous improvement.
Listen to our Director of Sustainability discuss climate change adaptation on the Brookbanks Podcast.
Specialist Contractor Support
Our hands-on contractor support helps procurement and construction teams embed sustainability into day-to-day project delivery. At tender and pre-construction stage, we provide sustainability advice, BREEAM and certification risk management and credit achievability reviews, along with support on public sector compliance requirements, including those of the GLA, DfE, Defence Infrastructure Organisation (DIO) and NHS.
On site, we support contractor-led BREEAM delivery, evidence production, coordination and compliance management. Practical, delivery-focused guidance helps teams meet sustainability objectives while staying aligned with programme, cost and quality requirements.
Sectors We Support
Our sustainability specialists support developers, landowners, investors, asset owners and contractors on projects of every scale, from a focused energy assessment for a single building to sustainability masterplanning and portfolio-wide net zero strategies.
Experience of public sector requirements, including those of the NHS, the Department for Education, the Greater London Authority and the Defence Infrastructure Organisation, means we can support healthcare, education and public sector estates alongside new homes built to the Future Homes Standard and the workplaces where occupant wellbeing and performance matter most.
Talk to Our Sustainability Specialists
For a focused assessment or strategic sustainability advice across a portfolio, contact a member of the team directly or email hello@brookbanks.com and one of our experts will get back to you.
Principal Sustainability Consultant, Land, Development and Communities
Hayley Lloyd
hayley.lloyd@brookbanks.com
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FAQs
When should we involve a sustainability specialist?
We recommend involving a sustainability specialist as early as possible. Advice at land appraisal or acquisition stage means sustainability requirements, certification targets and planning policy can be properly scoped, costed and embedded from the outset. This helps to avoid redesign later in the project.
Do you have in-house certification assessors?
Yes. We have in-house qualified assessors and Advisory Professionals who support certification under schemes including BREEAM, DREAM, WELL, LEED and Fitwel. Technical reporting on energy, thermal modelling, air quality and acoustics is provided by our own specialists.
Can you help with whole life carbon and net zero targets?
Yes. We undertake Life Cycle Assessment and Whole Life Carbon analysis, including GLA and DfE-compliant reporting. We also develop carbon reduction strategies, decarbonisation pathways and net zero strategies for individual buildings and wider portfolios.
Do you support contractors as well as developers and owners?
Yes. Our specialist contractor support covers tender and pre-construction advice, certification risk management, public sector compliance and on-site BREEAM delivery. It helps delivery teams meet sustainability targets within programme and cost.