BENCHMARK

What is it?

The NextGeneration Benchmark is the annual sustainability benchmark for the UK’s largest homebuilders. It is made up of criteria that spans eight sections, covering the full ESG spectrum. These criteria require companies to go beyond regulation and achieve industry best practice.

The benchmarking process is outlined below:

Selection

Largest 25 homebuilders in the UK selected for benchmarking, based on housing turnover and annual completions.

Assessment

Homebuilders are assessed on their publicly available sustainability information, across the benchmark criteria, covering the ESG spectrum.

Results

Additional services are available for homebuilders to receive a bespoke presentation of their results, breaking down areas of strength and where there is room for development.

Launch

The full Benchmark results and awards, along with NextGeneration’s Annual Report, are released via a Launch Event.

2025 RESULTS

BENCHMARK CRITERIA

The benchmark criteria are updated on a three-year
cycle to ensure they remain relevant and ambitious,
drive continuous improvement within the
homebuilding sector, address changing best
practice metrics and exceed minimum standards.
The full spectrum of environmental, social and
governance issues are covered, with focus given
both to the sustainability of homebuilders’
operations and the homes they build.

The benchmark criteria are publicly available,
encouraging corporate transparency and supporting
homebuilders to improve their sustainability
performance, while providing a holistic framework
for tackling a wide range of sustainability issues.

Please click the link below to access the 2025 – 2027 NextGeneration Benchmark criteria

BENEFITS

NextGeneration Homebuilders benefit from:

A clear understanding of industry best practices
The opportunity to purchase bespoke reports to help improve their performance
Networking and knowledge-sharing events, to aid collaboration and create solutions
Demonstrating their commitment to sustainability to stakeholders, including local authorities, Government and financial institutions

Slide

"The housebuilding sector’s transition to Net Zero is fundamental to the resilience of both the industry and wider UK economy. We must deliver high quality, low carbon homes, that are fit for purpose to ensure we create inclusive and sustainable communities. The NextGeneration Benchmark helps to provide a roadmap to house builders and developers to turn ambition into credible action and delivery.”

Chris Yau,

Director of Housing & Sustainability, Lloyds Corporate & Institutional Banking

Slide

"To accelerate the delivery of high-quality, sustainable homes, industry collaboration is essential. The Future Homes Hub is therefore delighted to have partnered with NextGeneration to align our respective reporting frameworks. This alignment streamlines data collection metrics, reducing the reporting burden on homebuilders with the desired goal of making sustainability reporting and benchmarking more accessible across the industry.”

Ed Lockhart,

Chief Executive, Future Homes Hub

Slide

“The NextGeneration Benchmark has been a great tool for us to measure our sustainability performance each year. From starting our sustainability journey five years ago we have been able to see the results of our efforts reflected in our NextGeneration score, and confirm our progress to become the highest scoring not-for-profit house builder. Having a clear set of criteria has allowed us to set suitable targets and provide direction to our project teams, who are ultimately the people behind our successes.”

James Parker,

Senior Sustainability Manager, Latimer by Clarion Housing Group

Slide

"Participating in the NextGeneration benchmark is about far more than a ranking. It provides us with a robust, independent measure of how effectively we are embedding sustainability into our strategy, governance and day-to-day operations. In an industry that plays such a critical role in shaping communities and making decisions with real long-term impact, this focus on transparency and accountability is essential. With a wide ranging focus on environmental and social sustainability NextGeneration enables us to demonstrate to communities, customers and partners that we are managing today’s most pressing societal issues in a structured, forward-looking way."

Lucy Hawkins,

Head of HR & Sustainability, London Square

Slide

"The NextGeneration Benchmark is a valuable tool for the housebuilding industry. “NextGen” allows us to compare performance against peers in our sector, and the detailed methodology also helps to inform our responsible business strategy. We find the team at JLL well informed and engaging, and the process is a positive experience for everyone involved."

Simon Park,

Head of Sustainability (Group Office), Bellway

Slide

"At Taylor Wimpey, we are members of NextGeneration because it provides an independent, industry-specific benchmark that goes well beyond minimum standards, helping the industry understand what good sustainability practice looks like in both our operations and the homes and places we build. By openly assessing performance and raising expectations, NextGeneration plays an important role in driving meaningful, long term change across homebuilding.”

Rose Sandell,

Group Communities Director, Taylor Wimpey

Enquiries

For homebuilders that would like to engage with the NextGeneration Benchmark, please contact Erica Spencer.