Carbon Reduction Plan 2025

Carbon Reduction Plan Reporting Year: 2025

Our commitments Achieving net zero Purcell is committed to being a force for good; lending social, economic and environmental benefits to places and communities through our architecture, masterplanning and heritage consultancy. Our purpose is to ensure that the economic, social, and environmental impacts of our operations are positive, both to us and to wider society.

Purcell have been calculating our operational carbon footprint since 2007 and our understanding of our environmental impact has been growing ever since. In 2020 we began offsetting all our calculated emissions that are within our direct control, including energy use and business travel.

We will continue to work on this basis and apply the principles and actions that have developed in our Carbon Governance Strategy. This includes a commitment to achieving on-going reductions in our total emissions, with a target of achieving a 50% reduction from our 2019 emissions, by 2030.

NEAR TERM AND NET ZERO TARGETS 2030 Scope 1&2

2035

50%

2050

(without offsets)

75%

reduction from 2019 figures

* Includes emissions within Purcell’s direct control (business travel, waste disposal, water, paper use, and hotel stays).

Carbon Reduction Plan 2025

2045

net zero

reduction from 2019 figures

Scope 3*

2040

Driving sustainable innovation in heritage As part of our commitment to helping our clients achieve their net zero aspirations, we drive sustainable innovation in the heritage sector. For example, Ledston Hall, a former country house in West Yorkshire was on the Heritage at Risk Register. We were appointed to transform this grade I listed building and return it to its former glory. Through extensive consultation we developed a unique approach to windows, retaining and repairing those deemed historically significant, whilst replacing almost two thirds with slimline doubleglazed units. This innovative approach ensured the project balanced both heritage and environmental aspirations.

net zero

with carbon removals as required

Ledston Hall, Yorkshire 02

Baseline emissions 2007 Baseline emissions are a record of the greenhouse gases that have been produced in the past and were produced prior to the introduction of any strategies to reduce emissions. Baseline emissions are the reference point against which emissions reduction can be measured.

Carbon sequestration through material selection To reduce the carbon impact of our projects, we specify materials with low embodied carbon.

Christ Church Visitor Centre in Oxford utilises a natural material palette - present in many heritage buildings - expressed through a contemporary architectural language. Materials like thatch, timber and hemp, sequester carbon during their growing period, which is then stored for the lifetime of the building. They also create beautiful places.

Our Baseline Emissions were established in 2007. The methodology for measuring this, and subsequent annual carbon footprint reporting, is in accordance with guidance for UK business from DEFRA (now largely under the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero).

We normalise our calculations to evaluate our targets on a per person basis so that we can demonstrate environmental improvements without hindering our growth aspirations.

BASELINE YEAR EMISSIONS

TOTAL (tCO2e)

Scope 1 & 2 (Energy use. Includes well to tank emissions)

235 tCO2e

Scope 3 (includes business travel, paper use, waste and water use)

187 tCO2e

Total operational emissions (Total per FTE)

422 tCO2e (3.04 tCO2e/FTE)

Carbon Reduction Plan 2025

Christ Church Visitor Centre, Oxford

03

Current reporting year 2025 After the significant increase in our carbon footprint in 2024, this year has seen that increase reversed.

Our operational carbon footprint has dropped by 11% despite staff numbers increasing by 7%. Our operational emissions per full time equivalent employee (FTE) has fallen by 16%.

This is in part due to the emission factors (that are set nationally and are used in the calculations each year) decreasing by over 16%. However, the footprint reduction has also been contributed to by a small reduction in energy use and a large reduction in business miles.

Our Scope 3 Emissions have increased.

This increase is largely due to our greater focus on this component of the footprint, and the resulting capture of more measurable data. For example, There was a 250% increase in waste related emissions from 2024, which we can attribute to more waste transfer notes (WTNs) being put forward for inclusion than in the previous year.

Carbon Reduction Plan 2025

REPORTING YEAR EMISSIONS

TOTAL (tCO2e)

Scope 1 (Onsite gas use for central heating)

30.9 tCO2e

Scope 2 (Electricity use)

38.1 tCO2e

Scope 3 (Includes business travel, well-to-tank, paper use, waste and water use)

154 tCO2e

Total operational emissions (Total per FTE)

223.2 tCO2e (0.72 tCO2e/FTE)

Total carbon offsets

-227 tCO2e

Additional calculated emissions (not within Purcell’s direct control) Scope 3 (Staff commuting)

130.7 tCO2e

Scope 3 (Home working)

41.6 tCO2e

Overall carbon footprint

396 tCO2e

Royal Observatory Greenwich, London

04

Current reporting year 2025

Our energy use per m2 was down in 2025, and

emissions from energy use fell by -7% compared with 2024.

Overall Carbon Footprint in baseline year (2007)

Baseline year 2007

299 kWh/m2

553

Previous year 2024

151 kWh/m2

tonnesCO2e

2025

RG

Scope 1

3%

30.9

SS

IO

Scope 2

38.1

Total business miles travelled per FTE reduced by

OM

%

82.7

21

TI N

MI

S

G

Public transport

MU

YE

141 kWh/m2

N

3

EN E

STA F

FC

-7.3%

48

31.1

tonnesCO2e

and walking or cycling made up 11%.

SC

OP

E3

%

18.4

22.3

SS

O

24.5

WTT**

EL

Public Other*

a 25% reduction in air travel

29

42.3

41.6

ER

There was

Private vehicle

Home working

TH

a 17% increase in car milage

Air travel

396

Private vehicle

Commuting by public transport made up 56%,

There was

AV

1.2 million miles.

15.7

Overall Carbon Footprint in 2025

TR

In 2025 our employees commuted almost

compared with 2024.

WTT**

S BU

IN

E

17 %

Key Scope 1 and 2 emissions Calculated scope 3 emissions within Purcell’s control

Operational Carbon Footprint (tonnes CO2e / FTE)

Calculated scope 3 emissions outside Purcell’s control

re d u

ction

targe

t

05

2040

sions

2035

2025

2020

emis

2030

Emissions offset

2015

2010

Includes energy, waste, water, paper, and business travel Carbon Reduction Plan 2025

*Other scope 3 includes paper, waste, water and hotel stays ** WTT = Well to Tank (greenhouse gas emissions released during the production, processing and delivery of a fuel)

Emissions reductions targets Carbon Governance Strategy In 2010 we developed our first Carbon Governance Strategy to set our long-term targets up to 2020 for carbon performance on our architectural work and studio activities. During 2020 we re-assessed our Carbon Governance Strategy and agreed the following targets for the years up to 2030:

01 Purchase carbon offsetting for calculated emissions within our direct control (this has been actioned since 2020).

02 Reduce net emissions by 50% (from the 2019 total) by 2030.

03 Reduce average energy in studios to 160 kWh/m2.

04 Analyse business miles in private cars by fuel type (diesel/petrol/hybrid/electric) 05 Adopt a policy that all hire cars used will, wherever possible, be at least selfcharging hybrids.

06 Recognise and promote best practices from the Covid-19 lockdown that reduce business travel.

Carbon governance strategy target / performance (kgCO2e/FTE)

07 Report regional totals in the Footprint Reports to emphasise the benefits of the regional strategy.

08 Reduce paper emissions by 50% (from 2019 levels) by 2030.

Target Actual To-Date

Carbon Reduction Plan 2025

06

Emissions reductions targets Exclusions and caveats Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions have been reported in accordance with SECR requirements. The below exceptions are not included in our Scope 3 emissions, as required by reporting standard for Carbon Reduction Plans and the Corporate Value Chain (Scope 3) Standard: •

Upstream transportation and distribution is not included and would be a nominal value for office supplies only.

•

Waste generated in operations: We monitor this through Waste Transfer Notes (WTN) and include within our operational footprint figures under Scope 3.

•

Employee commuting: We started calculating this in 2022. These emissions are outside of our direct control and therefore separated from our operational footprint.

Figures are included on page 04.

•

Home working: These emissions are outside of our direct control and are therefore separated from our operational footprint. Figures are included on page 04.

Carbon Reduction Plan 2025

Promoting refurbishment excellence The former pottery works in Stoke-on-Trent was on the Heritage at Risk Register. In an effort to save these iconic buildings, Stoke-on-Trent City Council commissioned their regeneration, to transform the crumbling buildings into CoRE (Centre of Refurbishment Excellence). This national centre for low energy retrofit, included insulating the fabric, window upgrades, and improved airtightness, whilst the integration of low carbon and renewable technologies pushed the boundaries of what was possible in a grade II listed building.

Centre for Refurbishment Excellence, Stoke on Trent

07

Carbon reduction projects Completed reduction initiatives Since the 2007 baseline analysis of our carbon footprint, the following environmental management measures and projects have been completed:

Energy 0.27 tCO e/FTE in 2025

Other scope 3 0.08 tCO e/FTE in 2025

We do not own any of the premises we occupy, however efforts to reduce our emissions from energy use includes:

•

Certifications

•

Relocating to energy efficient premises in Bristol, Cambridge, London, Norwich, Oxford and York.

Electronic document management and employee commitments across all studios has seen paper use reduced 90% from our baseline.

•

•

Upgrading heating systems in our older studios including Canterbury in late 2022 which equated to savings of 0.7 tCO2e per annum.

More accurate collection of waste transfer notes (WTN) has resulted in better data relating to our waste related emissions which make up less than 1% of our footprint.

Lock-in best practice

•

Migrated from office to cloud-based servers.

•

Hotel Stays were first measured in 2023. Emissions in 2025 were 4.7 tCO2e (-41% on 2024)

Since the enforced studio closures during the pandemic, we have retained a number of best practice initiatives that will help keep our carbon footprint low.

•

Energy efficiency awareness raising across all studios.

•

Water data is only available for four offices as others lack sub metering. We are working with landlords to improve our data collection.

•

Energy and travel well-to-tank (WTT) emissions are included in energy and business travel emissions.

•

We have successfully achieved ISO14001 certification annually since 2008.

•

In 2025 we became B Corp certified.

•

•

We have invested in hardware to support remote meetings and continued to review solutions to make virtual meetings effective whilst keeping the open plan nature of many of our studios.

We have been operating a flexible working policy where staff members are only required to commute to the office three days a week. This has reduced energy use in our studios and reduces carbon emissions related to commuter travel.

2

The above has resulted in an overall reduction in energy use per m2 of 48% since 2007.

Business travel 0.37 tCO e/FTE in 2025 2

•

•

Our Green Travel Policy aims to reduce the environmental impact of our work through the promotion of more sustainable means of travel.

An investment in video conferencing and remote working technology have reduced the need to travel for meetings.

The above initiatives have seen a reduction in average business miles per FTE down from ~4,000 per annum to an average of 1,700 per annum for the last 5 years.

Carbon Reduction Plan 2025

2

Offsetting operational emissions •

We have been offsetting our international travel since 2012.

•

We have been offsetting our total operational carbon footprint since 2020, which for the year of 2025, totalled 223 tCO2e.

08

Commuting 0.42 tCO e/FTE in 2025

The impact of our work

We originally measured emissions associated with the commuter travel of our employees from 2007 to 2012.

In 2022 we re-commenced the collection of this data through an annual staff survey. Whilst these emissions are largely outside of our control and not included in our operational footprint reporting, the data is used to inform policies and initiatives.

As professionals working in the built environment and construction sector, we acknowledge that the projects we work on and the buildings we design, have a far greater impact on the environment and the climate emergency, than the individual carbon footprints of our staff, or our studio operations.

•

Flexible working policy with work from home two days per week, avoiding commuting emissions.

•

We took opportunities to improve cycle parking and shower facilities in our studios, e.g., we installed a shower in Oxford in 2025, and increased access to showers in London.

•

We introduced an electric car salary sacrifice scheme in September 2024.

As signatories of Heritage Declares, Architects Declare a Climate and Biodiversity Emergency, and the RIBA 2030 Climate Challenge, we are committed to curtailing the negative effects of the construction industry through the work we do. We seek to evaluate all new projects against the aspiration to contribute positively to mitigating climate breakdown and encourage our clients to adopt this approach.

•

in 2025 the average commute per FTE is down 15% in mileage terms and down 51% on emissions compared to 2007.

•

Compared with 2012, the use of private cars for commuting has decreased by 40%, and miles by walking or bike is up 73%.

2

Homeworking 0.13 tCO e/FTE in 2025 2

Although not within our direct control, we use data from the commuting survey to estimate the average homeworking time for each employee. In 2025 it was 1.14 days per week.

• 2025 estimate homeworking emissions was 41.6 tCO2e. This is a small increase on 2024 but is down by 3.2% on a per FTE basis Carbon Reduction Plan 2025

Lessons from heritage for a circular economy Purcell brought together leading voices from across the built environment sector to share insights on how centuries-old stewardship principles can inform the transition to a circular economy. The Nothing New initiative is the result of those conversations. It is the latest step in Purcell’s mission to drive discussion and systemic change across the construction industry. The resulting publication distils these discussions into ten actionable recommendations for government and industry.

It highlights how the heritage sector’s wealth of transferable knowledge - rooted in reuse, repair and long-term care - offers a practical framework for scaling up a circular economy in the built environment.

Drapers Livery Hall, London

09

Carbon reduction projects Proposed reduction initiatives Energy Our Route to 2030 target for 2025 required average energy emissions of 298 kgCO2e/FTE. The actual emissions were 222 kgCO2e/FTE. As we do not own any of the properties we occupy, the planned reductions in energy emissions will require that the conversion factors for calculating emissions continue to reduce as the associated energy generation infrastructure becomes more carbon efficient. This is beyond our control, but the following actions will be applied by the practice to promote future energy use reductions: 01 Carry-out regular checks of heating system settings to ensure efficiency and that any temporary changes are promptly reversed.

02 Well in advance of lease renewals, review the energy efficiency potential of all properties, to assess whether the properties would be able to achieve energy efficiency improvements, or whether relocation would be the only option to provide improved energy efficiency.

03 Have discussions with the landlords to determine their commitment to energy improvement for the properties.

Carbon Reduction Plan 2025

04 Review the options to obtain more direct information from landlords in shared properties to improve the accuracy of the estimated elements of our energy use.

05 Help our landlords work towards Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards with an aspiration to achieve target of a minimum EPC standard of C for all UK studios by 2030.

Business travel 06 Reduce the target of 3,000 miles per FTE as this has been achieved by a significant margin for 5 years 07 Encourage/incentivise use of EVs for business travel.

The recorded business miles in EVs in 2025 was only 1.5% of the total car mileage.

Other scope 3 08 Continued commitment to reducing paper use

determined that there is insufficient data on which to base an estimate. This will be reviewed.

Commuting 11

Work with landlords to have more end-of-trip facilities installed in all studios.

12 Communicate commuting findings and promote awareness.

Homeworking 13 Continue to monitor for trends, promoting links to any government incentives for energy efficiency where relevant.

Projects 14 Initiate better data collection on projects aligned with B Corp requirements.

09 Work with landlords to get water meters installed in studios 10 Review options for measuring other Scope 3 components: eg. other goods and services and investments. The estimation of data storage emissions was reviewed in 2023 and it was

10

Declaration

This Carbon Reduction Plan has been completed in accordance with PPN 06/21 and associated guidance and reporting standard for Carbon Reduction Plans.

Emissions have been reported and recorded in accordance with the published reporting standard for Carbon Reduction Plans and the GHG Reporting Protocol corporate standard and uses the appropriate Government emission conversion factors for greenhouse gas company reporting (with the exceptions listed on page 07).

Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions have been reported in accordance with SECR requirements, and the required subset of Scope 3 emissions have been reported in accordance with the published reporting standard for Carbon Reduction Plans and the Corporate Value Chain (Scope 3) Standard (with the exceptions listed on page 07).

This Carbon Reduction Plan has been reviewed and signed off by the board of directors (or equivalent management body).

Signed: ……………………………………………………......................................................

31 March 2026

Date: ……………………….……….................................................................................

Carbon Reduction Plan 2025

National Portrait Gallery, London

11

Appendix A Offseting This year we have continued to purchase offsets for the emissions we have calculated that are within our direct control. We have chosen to continue our support for a carefully selected range of projects from within the Americas region that have strong additional benefits beyond reducing carbon emissions. These include health benefits and reducing deforestation.

All projects in this portfolio are certified to either the Verified Carbon Standard or the Gold Standard and include energy efficiency, reducing deforestation and clean drinking water projects. All certified credits follow the stringent requirements of the Quality Assurance Standard (QAS) for carbon offsetting.

We recognise that purchasing offsets can have positive impacts and generate much needed investments that help reduce climate change, for example in nature climate solutions. However, we acknowledge the challenges with the voluntary carbon market and do not see this as a substitute for the stringent emissionreduction requirements that need to be achieved collectively. We remain committed to reducing the impact of our business as much as possible before offsetting.

This certificate acknowledges that

Purcell Architecture Ltd offset

227 tonnes of carbon dioxide by supporting the following verified carbon offset project(s)

PORTFOLIO / Community Projects / 227 tCO₂

24/03/2026 Helping to combat climate change and sustain our environment for future generations

John Buckley Managing Director, Carbon Footprint Ltd

www.carbonfootprint.com

Certificate ID: cert-cs_live_a1ZAjHAQd0BWPECsRG9VPeeBDyLqeZXKNHS8FTpDIOxDEKOY9mAlKtNACu-1774362821211

Carbon Reduction Plan 2025

12

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Undertaking any unauthorised act in relation to this work may result in a civil claim for damages and/or criminal prosecution. Any materials used in this work which are subject to third party copyright have been reproduced under licence from the copyright owner except in the case of works of unknown authorship as defined by the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. Any person wishing to assert rights in relation to works which have been reproduced as works of unknown authorship should contact Purcell at info@purcelluk.com.

Name

Position

Role

Laura Baron

Associate Partner

Head of Sustainability

Purcell asserts its moral rights to be identified as the author of this work under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

Date

Issue

Purcell® is the trading name of Purcell Architecture Ltd.

March 2026

01

© Purcell Architecture 2025