Following the United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP29, we’re proud to announce that Winvic’s Sustainability and ESG Strategy has once again undergone a timely refresh, to bring it in line with new sustainability Standards, the current landscape and our many successes. Neave Thompson, our Senior Sustainability Manager, has managed this process, working with the Sustainability and ESG Leadership Team, Pillar Working Groups and colleagues across the business to review our KPIs and accomplishments to the end of 2023, and understand what’s attainable in the coming year.
As a knowledgeable sustainability expert, Neave was a member of Turley’s panel entitled Net Zero Carbon Standards and Impact on Organisations at UKREiiF earlier this year. Neave has also just joined the UK Green Building Council’s (UKGBC) task group for the work on Net Zero Carbon Buildings: A Framework Definition Update, and Winvic is delighted to be one of three Project Partners. We asked Neave to tell us a little more about what’s new about the strategy and what’s been going on in the world of sustainable construction. Plus, with Green Careers Week just passed between 4 and 9 November, Neave explains how she started her Winvic career and talks about her management of our Green Supply Chain and our sustainability audits and accreditations.
All the work I get involved with is incredibly fulfilling, but the Sustainability Strategy holds a special place in my heart. Not only because it provides a focus to everything we do through the four pillars of Planet, Innovation, People and Community, but also because I was involved in the very first iteration after my passion for sustainability was noticed. 
I completed my geography degree in 2019 and while it was focused on sustainability, it was very much an emerging sector at that time, and it was difficult to find a job that matched my goals. I found myself working at Winvic in the Commercial Support Team and I remember being impressed with the company’s commitment to sustainability and the environment and aimed to get more involved if the opportunity arose. It did when I spoke to a Director on the Winvic Group Board one day and he asked me about my degree. I was delighted to be asked to become a ‘Green Champion’ of the Innovation Pillar Group – I now lead this Group – and input on the first Sustainability Strategy through exploring innovative solutions to meet the KPIs.
When a Sustainability and CSR Coordinator role came up, I was excited about what I could offer. I spent half of my time working in the Social Value Team, helping with reporting, and the other half in the Sustainability Team, undertaking Life Cycle Assessments (LCA) and growing the Green Supply Chain (GSC). In March 2022, I moved wholly to the Sustainability Team as a Senior Sustainability Coordinator and by the end of that year I was promoted to Sustainability Manager with a team of four people. I’m delighted to have recently been given the title of Senior Sustainability Manager. I now manage six people, who undertake LCAs, including Robbie, a Senior Sustainability Coordinator who talked about the LCA process in a blog last November for Green Careers Week.
It’s hard to put into words how enormously the industry has transformed in the last few years – here at Winvic, in sustainable thinking and best practice within construction – and that’s why it’s crucial for us to evolve and refresh our Sustainability Strategy accordingly. There is no doubt that we have stepped out with bold initiatives, inspired subcontractors, clients and competitors alike, and been a champion of data transparency. But we’re not stopping there. We’ve earned a reputation for leading the way in sustainability and supporting a ‘just transition’ to Net Zero, and we aim to continue building on it.
When we first established our Net Zero vision in 2020, we knew our aspirations were ambitious. We knew that it would be challenging, but if we hadn’t set a bold target, we wouldn’t have achieved the great things that we have to date. Any developer, contractor or tenant who has some understanding of sustainable construction will understand when I explain the last few years has been an ever-evolving landscape of standards and guidance. And if there’s one thing that most people know about Winvic is that we do things right, and make the best decisions, not the easiest. The business focus is on reducing operational carbon emissions by 90% as outlined by Science Based Initiatives (SBTis) to be defined as Net Zero, which we are still proactively pursuing. Make no mistake we have moved the dial a long way in four years, and we are proud that we will operate as a carbon neutral business from 2025.
What’s also incredibly positive is that in us taking this honest, tenacious and robust approach to sustainability, we’ve been able to excel in a multitude of areas, exceed Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and push the business further by setting new benchmarks. For example, we’ve rolled out many carbon reduction initiatives last year, including solar panels on offices and temporary site accommodation. We targeted 40 per cent of our projects to be awarded with a BREEAM rating, but we delivered 62 per cent, and we aimed for 73 per cent of buildings constructed to achieve an EPC A rating, but this reached a total of 93 per cent.
We’re also very proud of our Green Supply Chain’s achievements and driving this initiative has been a career highlight for me. In 2021, when our Technical Services and Sustainability Director Arun Thaneja and I started meeting with different subcontractors whose work has the highest embodied carbon impact, nobody in the industry was even considering what we proposed: collecting primary data from our subcontractors for Winvic’s Scope 3 assessment and analysis.
What followed was an ambitious programme to educate, assist and upskill cohorts of subcontractors; by helping them to understand, collect and analyse their operational data, we have enabled them to make impactful process changes. As a collaborative Green Supply Chain that meets regularly, we can continually reduce our environmental impact through both on-site and operational carbon reduction activities. Such collective ambition is unprecedented, with a focus on low carbon materials with Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) and collecting robust data. I’m proud to say we now have 80 Green Supply Chain members, that are committed to transforming the industry with us.
To turn decarbonising opportunities into reality, we not only assume the role of educator and advisor with our subcontractor partners, but also our clients. We have always had one-to-one meetings but last month we hosted our first Client Environmental Social Governance (ESG) and Sustainability Workshop for those in the Industrial and Logistics sectors. Members of our Sustainability and Social Value teams presented on a number of key topics to around 50 people, with Danny Nelson – Managing Director of Industrial, Distribution & Logistics – leading proceedings.
It’s fantastic the Winvic Construction Board and the Group Board are fully committed to ESG, and have been since the company’s inception, but also having a dedicated Sustainability and ESG Leadership Team helps to drive the governance and decision making. I’ve led the expansion of our sustainability and ESG audits and accreditations since we joined the Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme (ESOS) back in 2018. These include Streamlined Energy Carbon Reporting (SECR) and ISO 14064-1, and this year we achieved the EcoVadis Silver Standard in our fourth year of gaining certification. In 2024 I’ve managed the process for Winvic to gain PAS 2080 for Buildings and Infrastructure and the Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) reporting. Being open and honest with our data is crucial, but these audits and accreditations also help us to stay ahead of the curve as we examine risks and opportunities associated with climate change.
So, what are the hot topics we’re helping clients and our supply chain to understand?
Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) – Whole Life Carbon Assessment (WLCA) for the Built Environment – The second edition was released at the end of 2023 with updates to the methodology for measuring carbon. It focuses on the entire lifecycle of a constructed asset, from the early stages of development though to the end of life, giving visibility to embodied, operational, and user carbon. This is something that is vital to carbon calculations and a unique feature of the RICS standard.
UK Net Zero Carbon Building Standard (UKNZCBS) – This long-awaited standard is the result of a collaborative initiative between 12 organisations active in the UK built environment and has the support of over 300 sector experts. It was released in its Pilot Version at the end of September. It contains sector-specific guidance on how a building should meet the Standard, including setting limits for upfront carbon and operational energy, targets for onsite renewable electricity generation and a more rigorous verification process. I’m very much looking forward to being part of the team of 36 people to be realigning the UKGBC’s : A Framework Definition Update with this new Standard.
BREEAM Version 7 – To be effective from 2025, this new version is a comprehensive overhaul, designed to align with evolving global standards and latest sustainability practices. In short, the standards are stricter and that’s why it’s another area our in-house Sustainability and BREEAM Teams and BREEAM Assessors have been concentrating on.
A Just Transition to Net Zero – Whether you call it the S in ESG, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), or social value, it’s a vital part of Winvic’s DNA. Currently we’re mindful of ensuring communities and the workforce aren’t left behind in the transition to a more sustainable future so we’re raising the bar with our latest Sustainability Strategy and committing to a Social Value Baseline across all projects, irrespective of local planning authority or client requirements. Futhermore, we recently announced that we will be sharing our expertise and insights on the Westminster cross-party Advisory Board of the Policy Liaison Group (PLG) on Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG)
There are more sustainability standards and guidance to navigate than ever before, but I see exciting opportunities and a significant step change ahead. My team is very well prepared to guide clients and supply chain partners through the recent and upcoming changes. Together, we have the power to drive meaningful, sustainable change across the industry, whilst leaving a positive social and environmental legacy.
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