Attitudes towards sustainability and the energy performance of building directive in the UK

The purpose of this paper is to examine attitudes towards sustainability in the UK office market. Although offices are relatively low consumers of energy in the national context, a well designed and specified Îgreen’ office can contribute to lower national CO2 outputs, reduce whole life costs and provide a more pleasant, productive working environment. Despite these benefits, environmentally friendly offices are comparatively rare. Anecdotal evidence suggests that only 200 offices a year are currently being assessed under the Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM). It is hoped that the research will be of interest to surveyors, property developers and office occupiers as well as academics. The paper attempts to quantify knowledge of BREEAM amongst surveyors working in the office market. To explore further, interviews with surveyors attempt to provide an insight into the main drivers towards sustainable office development, in particular market demand and the extent to which occupiers are prepared to pay a premium for sustainable design. The research also provides initial reactions to the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive.