What is BREEAM?

BREEAM (Building Research Establishment’s Environmental Assessment Method) is a voluntary scheme that works by awarding credits for meeting different environmental targets. It is the worlds longest established and most widely used environmental assessment method and the winner of the ‘Best Program Award’ at the 2005 Tokyo World Sustainable Building Conference.

In 1988 BRE, Stanhope Properties and ECD Architects and Energy Consultants joined forces with an aim to encouraging the construction industry to take environmental issues seriously. For 18 months they debated the issues which they thought were most important and in 1990 the first BREEAM for offices was launched. Since then the BRE have launched BREEAM for Healthcare, Education, Retail, Industrial, International, Multi residential, Courts, Prisons, Ecohomes and Bespoke which covers any building which cannot be
assessed under one of the other schemes.

Logos for various bodies