We recognise that our 2030 Sustainability Strategy is only attainable through an aligned approach across British Land. Therefore, we have invited Alex Walker Pow, our Sustainability Analyst, to share her insights and experiences as part of her role. Her contributions play a crucial role in decarbonising British Land’s portfolio, with a specific focus on developments.

What is involved with your role?

The Environmental Sustainability team leads the delivery of sustainability performance across our developments in line with our Sustainability Strategy and Net Zero Pathway. We collaborate with colleagues, consultants, and our supply chains to deliver ‘Best in Class’ developments through material reuse, design efficiency and low-carbon materials specification.

As a Sustainability Analyst, I am responsible for analysing and evaluating development sustainability metrics which is critical in quantifying our environmental impacts. With sustainability in the built environment ever-evolving, part of my role requires me to stay informed with government/local policies, and industry guidance to ensure sustainability principles are embedded in our decision-making process.

What are your typical day-to-day activities?

My role is diverse and I am often found either with my head in a spreadsheet analysing development data or visiting our construction sites in steel-capped boots to see how the numbers translate onsite.

I am then heavily involved with the reporting of development data and our ongoing sustainability performance throughout the year. This information feeds directly into British Land’s Annual Report, Sustainability Progress Report and external ESG benchmarks such as ‘GRESB’, demonstrating the strong progress we’re making on our 2030 Sustainability Strategy.

Beyond my reporting responsibilities, I attend regular sustainability meetings to monitor each development’s progress against its targets. By facilitating sustainability audits, I am uniquely positioned to identify best practices and innovations that can be shared across the wider team and enhance future developments. 

Any key successes in your role to date?

I have been working on the roll-out of the small Sustainability Brief which applies to projects between £300,000 and £5m. This workstream helps identify opportunities at smaller sites, often constrained by time and resources, to progress towards net zero carbon and how to integrate a place-based approach. Here, we discuss emerging topics such as net zero, social value, circular economy, and set appropriate targets for the scale of the development which both challenge and support our supply chain contractors on their sustainability journey.

What are the environmental team’s objectives for 2024?

One objective involved reviewing and updating the Sustainability Brief to ensure it continues to challenge our project teams to deliver space with excellent sustainability credentials. A specific focus for me has been climate resilience, and how we can ensure our buildings can prepare for, respond to, and recover from the impacts of hazardous climatic events.

Also, I am involved with the ‘Green Skills Lab’ working group, where in collaboration with the Social Impact team we are exploring what a just transition to net zero might mean for our business and the roles we need to deliver change.

What do you love most about your job?

In my role, I witness first hand the emerging sustainable trends within the built environment. We are constantly presented with new and exciting solutions to deliver against our ambitious targets from decarbonising concrete, to using waste streams to create new materials, harnessing bio-based materials for construction, and many more. Our regenerative approach to sustainability at British Land seeks to create spaces that sustain and actively contribute to the current and future health of our planet and communities, so it is a pleasure to have an integral role in achieving this.

For more on our sustainability strategy Greener Spaces, Thriving Places, Responsible Choices, visit: www.britishland.com/sustainability

We encourage interested customers to get in touch. Together, we can accelerate progress: [email protected]