Legal & General commits to net zero carbon across its housing portfolio

Housing is a major contributor to carbon emissions so requires some of the most radical and immediate overhauls of any industry. Legal & General is one of the UK’s largest house-builders by volume, and its housing platform continues to grow. 

• Guild Living and Inspired Villages, Legal & General’s later living businesses, consists of over 1,000 homes in six villages with a pipeline of 18 further sites in development
• Legal & General’s growing Build to Rent portfolio currently has 5,000 homes across 13 schemes in the UK
• CALA Group completed over 2,400 new-build homes in 2019
• Legal & General Affordable Homes has a pipeline of over 3,500 homes
• Legal & General Modular Homes has ambitions to build its annual housing delivery to 3,000 homes a year in 2024, with work on its eight acre site to in Selby, North Yorkshire, underway

The commitment to deliver operational net zero carbon on all new homes is testament to Legal & General’s long-term vision for housing in the UK.  Net zero carbon will be achieved on all new Legal & General homes through a combination of improved thermal building fabric and the use of environmental control systems, including low and zero-carbon technologies. 

As a Group, Legal & General has been piloting energy-saving initiatives through the design and operation of its house-building businesses.  Legal & General Modular Homes’ product portfolio – which will form all future developments and consists of two and three bedroom family homes along with one and two bedroom apartments - meets the government’s EPC ‘A’ rating as standard (only around 1% of new and existing dwellings in England & Wales currently meet this rating^[1]).   Inspired Villages, Legal & General’s later living business, have successfully reduced utility consumption by 30% across its properties, with 10% of parking spaces reserved for electric vehicle charging.

As part of its commitment to deliver a low-cost, low-carbon economy, Legal & General invests its capital in clean energy assets, businesses and technologies to help accelerate progress including: offshore wind, solar and fusion energy.  Recently, Legal & General has increased its stake in Pod Point, one of the UK’s largest electric vehicle charging companies, to c. 22% alongside EDF, and invested in Kensa Group, one of the UK’s largest players in the ground source heat pump technology sector, taking a 36% stake. 

Our commitment to deliver low-carbon, energy-efficient homes

The UK Green Building Council’s definition of a building that operates at net zero carbon emissions is as follows:

“When the amount of carbon emissions associated with the building’s operational energy on an annual basis is zero or negative. A net zero carbon building is highly energy efficient and powered from on-site and/or off-site renewable energy sources, with any remaining carbon balance offset.”

In line with the definitions within the UK Green Building Council (UKGBC) Framework, by 2030 L&G will have enabled all its new housing stock to operate with net zero carbon emissions. This will be achieved by:

Addressing operational energy in our homes, both the amount used and the primary energy source. The thermal performance of our building fabric will help reduce unwanted heat loss in-line with industry best practice (Future Homes Standard and above), each incorporating environmental control systems which seek to utilise low- and zero- carbon technologies.