BREEAM is used to specify and measure the sustainability performance of buildings, ensuring that projects meet sustainability goals and continue to perform optimally over time.
A BREEAM assessment uses recognised measures of performance, which are set against established benchmarks, to evaluate a building’s specification, design, construction and use. The measures used represent a broad range of categories and criteria from energy to ecology. Each category focuses on the most influential factors, including reduced carbon emissions, low impact design, adaptation to climate change, ecological value and biodiversity protection.
Integrating sustainability measures at the earliest possible stage of a project using the BREEAM framework enables reduced life cycle costs and increases in asset value, building user experience and health, corporate image and CSR requirements, and risk mitigation.
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The BREEAM process
Assessing your assets to BREEAM is easy. With over 30 years’ experience in sustainability assessment and third-party accreditation, you can be confident in the BREEAM sustainability journey.
BREEAM assessment categories
BREEAM provides a holistic sustainability assessment framework, measuring sustainable value in a series of categories and validating this performance with third-party certification. Each of these categories addresses influential factors, including low impact design and carbon emissions reduction; design durability and resilience; adaption to climate change; and ecological value and biodiversity protection.
BREEAM ratings
A BREEAM certified rating reflects the performance achieved by a project and its stakeholders, as measured against the BREEAM standard and its benchmarks. The rating enables comparability between projects and provides assurance on performance, quality and value of the asset.
The BREEAM ratings range from Acceptable (In-Use scheme only) to Pass, Good, Very Good, Excellent to Outstanding and it is reflected in a series of stars on the BREEAM certificate. Always look for the BREEAM certificate and certification mark to verify an assessment and its BREEAM rating. You can also search for certified assessments via our listings.
Choosing the right standard for your project
The BREEAM suite of schemes enables consistent and comparable assessment and verification across the entire built environment lifecycle.
Third-party accredited
BREEAM’s third-party certification involves the validation of the assessment by impartial experts known as BREEAM Assessors. BREEAM Assessors are qualified and licensed to ensure the assessment meets BREEAM quality and performance standards.
The assessment then undergoes a Quality Audit (QA) check from the accredited third-party independent and impartial certification body, BRE Global Ltd. The BREEAM certification mark provides an internationally recognised badge of assurance that the assessment of a project conforms to the requirements of the scheme. The certification mark can be showcased to demonstrate the quality, performance and sustainable credentials of the asset.
BRE Global Ltd is accredited by the United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) against BS EN ISO/IEC 17065:2012 – General requirements for bodies operating product certification systems for providing certification activities associated with the assessment of environmental performance of:
- Masterplanning
- New construction of infrastructure & buildings
- Buildings in use
- Refurbishment of buildings
In addition, all BREEAM related activities are aligned to ISO 9001.
As an accredited certification body, BRE Global maintains an open and accountable governance structure that, amongst other things, safeguards impartiality. For more detail about the BRE Global, visit here.
Stakeholders can have confidence in our certifications because we conduct them and our business in a fair and impartial manner, and with avoidance of undue influence arising from conflicts of interest. We maintain impartiality by apply a number of principles and these can be viewed in our Statement of Impartiality.
BREEAM Case studies
Browse the latest case studies from BREEAM
Using BREEAM across an asset’s lifecycle: Hermes Business Campus
World’s largest real estate certification powered by BREEAM In-Use for Dutch investors Vesteda
Natural cosmetics company APIVITA awarded with BREEAM In-Use ‘Excellent’ rating for Athens headquarters ‘The Hive’
BNP Paribas Real Estate and Generali Real Estate achieve target of BREEAM In-Use V6 Excellent rating
China Basin – Achieving BREEAM Very Good rating on a waterfront Tech & Life Sciences Campus in San Francisco
WashREIT leverages green bond funding to achieve BREEAM certification of eight assets
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