Measurement & Benchmarking

Assessing the environmental performance of portfolios and assets is fundamental to understanding investment risks and opportunities. It enables property owners to identify poorly performing assets or funds and to use this data to identify opportunities for improvement or innovation.

In order to measure and analyse performance data effectively, it is essential to have accurate data gathering tools and robust benchmarks that enable property owners to compare assets, set targets and report on progress.  Our measurement and benchmarking workstream covers two of our biggest projects at the BBP, the Real Estate Environmental Benchmark (REEB) and NABERS UK. 

Real Estate Environmental Benchmark (REEB) Working Group Chair

Every year, members of the BBP submit data on their managed UK commercial real estate portfolio into the REEB. REEB is one of the only benchmarks based on the performance of buildings ‘in-use’ and is increasingly becoming the industry standard used by investors, fund managers and property owners to compare the performance of commercial properties across the UK. 

Find out more about our REEB project here.

Highlights of the last year include:

• A refreshed REEB Benchmarks document was published in spring-summer 2024, featuring a new ‘REEB In Context’ section that positions BBP benchmarks alongside other major industry initiatives to show sector-wide progress post-pandemic. 
• Our annual REEB ‘Member Eyes Only’ session was held in June 2024 at 5 Endeavor Square, London, hosted by TfL, offering members exclusive insight into the latest data analysis and sector trends. 
• The Managing Agent Partnership convened in May 2024 at Cushman & Wakefield for a detailed REEB data analysis meeting to review findings and share practical insights.  The group also hosted a ‘lunch & learn’ event in January 2025 to discuss how the REEB data (and benchmarks in general) can be applied effectively within managing agent operations. 
• REEB Insights was launched in autumn 2024 to provide members with more frequent updates on key environmental metrics such as EPC ratings and water usage trends, supporting ongoing performance management.  
• A sub-set of the REEB database was shared (with member permission) with UCL, as a ‘clarifying dataset’ for the government’s National Buildings Database, which is expected to report it’s findings in Autumn 2025, and provide another valuable source of benchmark data for the real estate sector. 

Related Resources:

• BBP Real Estate Environmental Benchmark
• BBP Energy Benchmarks for Large Shopping Centres

NABERS UK Working Group Co-Chairs

The Better Buildings Partnership has been working for over a decade to help our members improve the energy performance of their property portfolios.

Since the launch of NABERS UK in 2020, our work in this area has been pressing ahead. We have been working alongside BRE and NABERS to build the infrastructure for the new scheme. In April 2021 we launched the Design for Performance (DfP) framework, designed to help office developments and major refurbishments to meet their sustainability goals. Find out more about NABERS UK here.

Highlights of the year include:

• Successfully transitioned scheme administration to CIBSE in April 2024, with BBP supporting launch activities and ongoing communications. 
• Governance review completed with NABERS, CIBSE and BBP agreeing a temporary MoU and re-appointing the Steering Committee through a formal process. 
• Held a working group meeting in July 2024 focused on the practical challenges of DfP-rated buildings coming into operation. 
• Continued to support members and the scheme through engagement with individual organisations, external events, and ongoing policy discussions.

Related Resources:

• BBP Design for Performance