March 17 saw the launch of the 2020 NextGeneration Results at a packed webinar led by leaders from across the sector. Hosted virtually by Guy Grainger, Global Head of Sustainability Services & ESG at JLL, the event highlighted a range of exciting ways homebuilders’ can improve the sustainability of their operations and futureproof their homes. We were delighted to welcome Professor Sadie Morgan OBE, the co-founding director of Sterling Prize winning architecture firm dRMM, who provided an insightful keynote speech on the role of socially useful architecture in the residential sector. The Launch Event closed with a panel discussion between a selection of representatives who’s companies are flying the flag for greater sustainability in the sector. They discussed their experiences and challenges throughout the the past year, providing insights into how the sector can use their learnings from the pandemic to build healthier homes of the future. The participants were:
- Jon Di-Stefano, CEO of Telford Homes
- Sadie Morgan, Co-founding Director, dRMM
- Bukky Bird, Group Sustainability Director, Barratt Developments
- Kristy Lansdown, Project Director of Elephant Park, Lendlease
2020 NextGeneration Benchmark Results
The 2020 NextGeneration Results showed the significant steps leading homebuilders are taking to improve the sustainability of their operations and homes. Telford Homes topped the 2020 Benchmark for the first time, after a highly commendable 4-year winning streak? by Lendlease. Barratt Developments PLC and Lendlease achieved joint second to both secure Gold Awards, while Taylor Wimpey moved from fourth to fifth, achieving a Silver Award. New member Hill ranked ninth, a commendable improvement on their 19th position in 2016, when they first appeared on the benchmark.
Andrew Day, Sustainability Director at Telford Homes states: “Throughout this unprecedented year, continuing to shape and refine our Building a Living Legacy strategy has been more important than ever; helping us to better understand the materiality issues when balanced against the evolving policy landscape and societal shifts in attitudes. We are delighted that our dedication and progress has been continued to be recognised by the NextGeneration sustainability bench”.
Companies included in the Benchmark contribute to a total turnover of £33bn, account for 66% of homes built in the past year and directly employ 43,957 people. A continued broad range of rankings in 2020 highlights a significant disparity in sustainability impact and public disclosure of this information within the industry. However, the introduction of a higher Phase 1 weighting this year has rewarded companies that place more information in the public domain, as it is only through clearly sharing your sustainability information can the sector learn and improve. NextGeneration members continue to lead the way with an average score of over double the industry average (75 compared to 37), reflecting both the benefits of expert advice and peer learning, and the greater disclosure of sustainability information by members to the benchmark.
The 2020 NextGeneration Report was also released at the Launch. Based on extensive international research, the report focusses on how homebuilders can learn from the experiences of their customers alongside their own during the past year to respond to sustainability trends that have come to the fore due to the pandemic. Innovations in health and wellbeing, home flexibility and advanced building techniques are highlighted. By responding to these pandemic related experiences, homebuilders can place themselves in a strong position to adapt and succeed.