NZC

UK energy, carbon and ESG guidance directory

A curated reference library of the official governing bodies, standards, schemes, regulations and guidance sources referenced across NZC Consultants' services. Built for landlords, asset managers, companies and ESG teams.

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Net Zero Buildings

Net Zero Carbon Buildings

Technical definitions and verification frameworks for net zero carbon buildings in the UK.

  • UK Net Zero Carbon Buildings Standard

    UK NZCBS Consortium (UKGBC, BBP, BRE, CIBSE, IStructE, LETI, RIBA, RICS)

    Technical framework for defining and verifying net zero carbon buildings in the UK, covering operational energy, embodied carbon and renewable energy considerations.

    Relates to: NZCBS Alignment & Net Zero Strategy

    View official guidance

EPC & MEES

EPCs and MEES

Energy Performance Certificates and Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards for commercial property.

  • Energy Performance of Buildings — guidance

    GOV.UK / DESNZ

    Statutory guidance on Energy Performance Certificates for commercial and domestic buildings in England and Wales.

    Relates to: Commercial EPC

    View official guidance

  • Non-domestic EPC Register

    MHCLG / Landmark

    Official register for lodging and retrieving non-domestic Energy Performance Certificates and DECs in England and Wales.

    Relates to: Commercial EPC

    View official guidance

  • Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards — non-domestic

    GOV.UK / DESNZ

    Statutory MEES guidance for landlords of non-domestic privately rented property, including exemptions and enforcement.

    Relates to: Commercial MEES

    View official guidance

  • DESNZ MEES consultations and responses

    Department for Energy Security & Net Zero

    Open and closed consultations covering future EPC C/B uplifts, methodology reform and rented sector minimum standards.

    Relates to: Commercial MEES

    View official guidance

  • Building Regulations — Approved Document Part L

    MHCLG

    Approved documents on the conservation of fuel and power for new and existing buildings, applied at refurbishment and fit-out.

    Relates to: Decarbonisation Reports

    View official guidance

ESOS

ESOS

Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme — mandatory energy audits for large UK undertakings.

  • ESOS — guidance for participants

    Environment Agency

    Lead Assessor guidance on undertaking and notifying ESOS energy audits, including significant energy consumption and de minimis rules.

    Relates to: ESOS

    View official guidance

  • ESOS — overview and qualification

    GOV.UK

    Statutory overview of ESOS qualification criteria, compliance routes (ISO 50001, DECs, EPCs, audits) and reporting obligations.

    Relates to: ESOS

    View official guidance

  • MESOS portal — notification system

    Environment Agency

    Online notification system used by ESOS Lead Assessors and responsible undertakings to submit compliance and action plan reports.

    Relates to: ESOS

    View official guidance

  • ESOS Phase 4 updates

    Environment Agency / DESNZ

    Latest updates on Phase 4 qualification dates, audit requirements and action plan reporting for the 2027 compliance cycle.

    Relates to: ESOS

    View official guidance

SECR

SECR and Carbon Reporting

Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting and corporate carbon disclosure under the Companies Act.

  • SECR — environmental reporting guidelines

    DESNZ / DEFRA

    Statutory Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting guidance for quoted, large unquoted and LLP entities under the Companies Act.

    Relates to: SECR

    View official guidance

  • Companies Act 2006 — strategic and directors' reports

    GOV.UK

    Underlying statutory reporting requirements that SECR sits within, including directors' report disclosures on energy and emissions.

    Relates to: SECR

    View official guidance

  • GHG Protocol — Corporate Standard

    WRI / WBCSD

    Global accounting and reporting standard for corporate greenhouse gas inventories, the basis for Scope 1, 2 and 3 reporting.

    Relates to: GHG Protocol Inventory

    View official guidance

  • UK Government GHG conversion factors

    DESNZ / DEFRA

    Annual UK conversion factors used for SECR, ESOS, GHG Protocol and SBTi inventories, covering fuels, electricity, transport and refrigerants.

    Relates to: SECR

    View official guidance

  • GHG Protocol — Scope 2 and Scope 3 guidance

    WRI / WBCSD

    Detailed guidance on location-based and market-based Scope 2 accounting and value chain Scope 3 categories.

    Relates to: GHG Protocol Inventory

    View official guidance

CRREM

CRREM and Real Estate Decarbonisation

Carbon Risk Real Estate Monitor pathways, stranding risk and fund-level decarbonisation methodology.

  • CRREM — Carbon Risk Real Estate Monitor

    CRREM Initiative

    Official CRREM project portal with downpathways, tools and methodology for assessing transition risk in real estate portfolios.

    Relates to: CRREM Analysis

    View official guidance

  • CRREM decarbonisation pathways

    CRREM Initiative

    Country and asset-type specific 1.5°C and 2°C decarbonisation pathways for energy and carbon intensity benchmarking.

    Relates to: CRREM Analysis

    View official guidance

  • CRREM stranding risk methodology

    CRREM Initiative

    Methodology for assessing the year at which an asset crosses its decarbonisation pathway — the stranding year.

    Relates to: CRREM Analysis

    View official guidance

  • Better Buildings Partnership — Climate Commitment

    Better Buildings Partnership

    UK real estate owner commitment framework aligning portfolio decarbonisation with science-based pathways including CRREM.

    Relates to: Property Fund Decarbonisation

    View official guidance

ESG

ESG, Disclosure and Fund Reporting

ESG benchmarking, climate disclosure and sustainability reporting frameworks for funds and corporates.

  • GRESB Real Estate Assessment

    GRESB

    Global ESG benchmark for real estate portfolios used by institutional investors to compare fund-level sustainability performance.

    Relates to: ESG Strategy & Property Funds

    View official guidance

  • TCFD — climate-related financial disclosures

    Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures

    Disclosure recommendations on governance, strategy, risk management and metrics & targets for climate-related risks.

    Relates to: ESG Strategy

    View official guidance

  • ISSB — IFRS S1 and IFRS S2

    International Sustainability Standards Board

    Global baseline sustainability and climate disclosure standards used as the foundation for UK Sustainability Disclosure Standards.

    Relates to: ESG Strategy

    View official guidance

  • Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi)

    SBTi

    Validation framework for corporate near-term and net zero targets aligned with the Paris Agreement.

    Relates to: Net Zero Strategy

    View official guidance

  • FCA Sustainability Disclosure Requirements (SDR)

    Financial Conduct Authority

    UK SDR and investment labels regime governing sustainability claims and disclosures by FCA-regulated firms.

    Relates to: Property Fund Disclosure

    View official guidance

  • UK Green Taxonomy — consultation and updates

    HM Treasury / DESNZ

    Developing UK classification framework for environmentally sustainable economic activities, relevant to fund and corporate disclosure.

    Relates to: ESG Strategy

    View official guidance

Embodied Carbon

Embodied Carbon and Whole Life Carbon

Methodologies for assessing embodied and whole life carbon in buildings and refurbishments.

  • RICS Whole Life Carbon Assessment for the Built Environment

    Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors

    Professional standard for whole life carbon assessment, covering embodied and operational carbon across building life cycle stages.

    Relates to: Embodied Carbon

    View official guidance

  • LETI — Climate Emergency Design Guide & Embodied Carbon Primer

    Low Energy Transformation Initiative

    Industry guidance on operational and embodied carbon targets for new and refurbished UK buildings.

    Relates to: Embodied Carbon

    View official guidance

  • UKGBC — Net Zero Carbon Buildings framework

    UK Green Building Council

    Industry definition and framework for net zero carbon buildings in construction and operation.

    Relates to: NZCBS Alignment

    View official guidance

  • CIBSE TM65 — embodied carbon in building services

    Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers

    Methodology for calculating embodied carbon emissions of building services equipment where EPDs are not available.

    Relates to: Embodied Carbon

    View official guidance

  • IStructE — How to Calculate Embodied Carbon

    Institution of Structural Engineers

    Practitioner guide for structural engineers on embodied carbon calculation aligned with RICS methodology.

    Relates to: Embodied Carbon

    View official guidance

Building Performance

Building Performance and Energy Guidance

Technical guidance on operational building energy performance, HVAC and inspection regimes.

  • CIBSE — technical knowledge portal

    Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers

    Technical guides, TMs and application manuals covering building services design, energy and HVAC performance.

    Relates to: Energy Audits & Decarbonisation

    View official guidance

  • NABERS UK

    BRE / NABERS UK

    Operational energy rating scheme for UK offices, providing a measured performance benchmark complementary to EPCs.

    Relates to: Decarbonisation Reports

    View official guidance

  • CIBSE TM54 — evaluating operational energy use at design stage

    CIBSE

    Methodology for predicting in-use energy performance of new and refurbished buildings beyond Part L compliance modelling.

    Relates to: Decarbonisation Reports

    View official guidance

  • TM44 Air Conditioning Inspections

    CIBSE / GOV.UK

    Statutory inspection regime for air conditioning systems above 12 kW in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

    Relates to: Energy Audits

    View official guidance

  • Building Regulations — Approved Document Part L

    MHCLG

    Conservation of fuel and power requirements applied to new build, refurbishment and material changes of use.

    Relates to: Decarbonisation Reports

    View official guidance

  • BSI — relevant British Standards

    British Standards Institution

    BS EN 16247 (energy audits), BS EN ISO 50001 (energy management) and related standards underpinning UK compliance regimes.

    Relates to: Energy Audits & ESOS

    View official guidance

NZC Consultants downloadable guides

Practical guides written by our consultants

Free checklists and briefings written by NZC Consultants for landlords, funds and corporate occupiers.

EPC / MEES

EPC B Readiness Checklist

Practical checklist to test whether a commercial asset or portfolio is on track for an EPC B rating ahead of the proposed 2030 uplift.

For: Commercial landlords and asset managers
EPC / MEES

MEES Compliance Guide for Commercial Property

A working reference covering current MEES rules, enforcement, exemptions, and the direction of travel following the June 2026 DESNZ Interim Response (proposed EPC B for non-domestic buildings >1,000 m²).

For: Landlords, funds and property managers
CRREM

CRREM Guide for Property Funds

Introduction to applying the Carbon Risk Real Estate Monitor pathways across a UK and European commercial property portfolio.

For: Fund managers, ESG teams and asset managers
ESOS

ESOS Phase 4 Readiness Checklist

Step-by-step checklist for qualifying UK companies preparing for the ESOS Phase 4 compliance window.

For: Large UK companies and multi-site operators
SECR

SECR Reporting Checklist

A finance-team-friendly checklist for Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting disclosures in the Directors' Report.

For: Finance directors and ESG managers

Disclaimer

External resources are provided for reference only. NZC Consultants does not control third-party guidance and users should check the official source for the latest requirements. Formal advice should be sought before making compliance, investment or reporting decisions.

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