Decarbonising Communities will harness the combined expertise of Morgan Sindall Construction’s customers, employees and supply chain partners to change the way buildings are designed and constructed, in order to reduce the amount of carbon associated with each built asset. Crucially, this will include a focus on reducing carbon emissions within their supply chain and applying science-based benchmarks to reduce whole life carbon on projects, in order to meet the 1.5-degree global warming target, alongside UK government targets.

Underpinning this approach is CarboniCa, an innovative carbon calculation tool that will allow project teams to work with customers to estimate, manage and reduce whole life carbon emissions through the design, construction and entire lifecycle of an asset. The easy to use tool has been externally validated by Arup to the latest industry standards and is flexible to allow for the different project types being undertaken.

Aligned to the UK Green Building Council framework for net zero buildings and the aims of the Construction Playbook, both CarboniCa and the wider Decarbonising Communities strategy will help upskill and empower clients to make environmentally friendly decisions based on meaningful and robust data, in order to reduce the harmful effects of carbon emissions on local communities.

In support of this effort, Morgan Sindall Construction has also announced an innovative partnership with the Carbon Literacy Project which will see its staff visiting schools to tell school learners and teaching communities about the role that the construction industry can play in decarbonising communities.

In addition, every member of staff will make a Personal Carbon Pledge, which will allow each individual to make a small yet significant change to their way of working in order to help the company decarbonise.

Parent company Morgan Sindall Group became the first UK construction company to voluntarily have its targets verified by the Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi). These targets enable the group to contribute to keeping rising temperatures below those set out in the Paris Agreement.

In September 2020, the Group was also a founder signatory to Contractors Declare, which made clear the collective ambition to reduce embodied and operational carbon emissions. Now, Decarbonising Communities builds on Contractors Declare by committing Morgan Sindall Construction to develop innovative methods to remove carbon from each stage of the construction process, working towards climate positive, environmentally effective assets that will serve future generations.

Pat Boyle, managing director of Morgan Sindall Construction, said: “The measures we’re undertaking as part of Decarbonising Communities reflect Morgan Sindall Construction’s belief that merely complying with legislation or relying on carbon offsetting to minimise the impact of emissions is not enough. If we’re going to save the planet, more needs to be done – and faster.

“Through our example and our sharing of expertise, we hope to bring our clients and supply chain with us on a journey that will result in a quantifiable and transparent contribution to the reduction of carbon in the built environment, leaving a climate positive legacy on all assets. Every action has a part to play – whether that’s a member of our office team pledging to reduce the amount of paper they use or the development of hydrogen power and low carbon heat networks for use on a £50 million asset.

“We believe it is incumbent upon industry leaders like ourselves to demonstrate that the UK can be at the forefront of the global effort to rescue the natural world for the benefit of future generations.

“We have long been at the vanguard of carbon reduction within construction, and Decarbonising Communities continues this effort. Reaching our goal will not be straightforward but we are steadfast in our belief that it’s our responsibility to demonstrate the conviction and leadership that will result in the transformation of how carbon reduction is delivered within the construction industry.”