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PROJECT APPROACH
PROJECT APPROACH
seven are committed as a business and building designers to reducing negative environmental impacts and contributing to social value. Through collaboration and expertise, we can contribute to combating the climate and biodiversity crisis and help clients on their own sustainability journeys. Our building designs are where we can make the most difference, as such we take a whole-life design approach to reduce emissions from our building designs resulting in buildings of high social, economic and environmental value. Our sustainability journey is ongoing and continuously evolving and as signatories of Architects Declare, we recognise our position as leaders in developing solutions and strengthening our working practices to create architecture that has a more positive impact on the world around us.
Through a curated range of services and specialist expertise we can support you in tailoring your environmental objectives to maximise sustainability as early as possible in the project journey. Whether it be through monitoring emissions throughout the life of the project, Passive House design, guidance through a retrofit project, or support through a sustainable certification scheme, we can help realise your environmental goals.
Our team includes a group of sustainability professionals who are experts in their field, including Certified Passive House Designers, Construction Life Cycle Assessment Specialists, Specialist Conservation Architects and Architects with expertise across a wide range of retrofit projects. We have extensive experience in supporting on BREEAM, SKA, Fitwel and WELL accreditations as well as client’s wider net-zero agendas.
PRACTICE APPROACH
PRACTICE APPROACH
Whilst our approach to projects is holistic and arguably more impactful, we consider our practice impact under our direct control. We have measured our carbon footprint in house for several years, but to really understand our impact we have become certified with Planet Mark and set science-based targets to make meaningful reductions where we can.
Whilst our focus is on emissions reduction, in the meantime we have purchased carbon credits from Carbon Neutral Britain, an international carbon offsetting company certified by the Verified Carbon Standard and Gold Standard to offset any residual carbon emissions.
We have also overhauled our environmental management systems to achieve our goals which adhere to and are certified through the ISO14001 standard, fully integrated with our ISO 9001 quality management system.
We are now a certified B Corps! We took the step to become a B Corps to demonstrate our active commitment to society and the environment with a certification which aligns with our mission, vision and values to improve lives, inspire learning and enrich heritage. By reporting all aspects of the business, we can validate our practice as a force for good. As a Certified B Corp business, we are committed to sustainability, meeting high standards of social and environmental performance, transparency and accountability, whilst supporting our clients in their own sustainability goals.
SUSTAINABILITY CONSULTANCY
SUSTAINABILITY CONSULTANCY
Our specialist experts are integrated into studio teams bringing the latest sustainable innovation to our designs. We like to consult at early stages to integrate realistic but ambitious sustainable objectives into the project brief – this is where the biggest reduction of emissions and value can be added.
CARBON ASSESSMENT
CARBON ASSESSMENT
A Whole Life Carbon Assessment calculates the embodied carbon of materials, construction and maintenance as well as operational carbon in use. Quantifying embodied carbon at an early stage allows carbon emissions to be reduced by making key design decisions on form and materiality. We can carry out whole life or embodied carbon assessments, using industry leading software One Click LCA for compliant assessments which can also assist clients with reporting their Scope 3 carbon emissions.
PASSIVE HOUSE
PASSIVE HOUSE
Passive House is a leading international, performance-based design standard delivering indoor comfort, health and low energy building designs. Our in-house Certified Passive House Designers can support on projects aiming for Passive House certification using the Passive House Planning Package (PHPP) or guiding a Passive House fabric first approach.
RETROFIT
RETROFIT
Of all the buildings that will be standing 100 years from now, most of them have already been built and some of our most interesting projects involve breathing new life into existing buildings. We believe that renewing and upgrading our existing building stock to help minimise unnecessary demolition, and reduce the consumption of energy and raw materials, is key to supporting a transition to net zero.
Our retrofit team have expertise across a wide range of building types and work across the studios to ensure that projects achieve optimal performance through detailed assessments of existing buildings and the formation of creative low carbon strategies for their re-use.
HERITAGE
HERITAGE
Our Specialist Conservation Architects and Conservation team are embedded across the practice with the specialist skills to work with the historic fabric of listed and heritage buildings to assess their needs, bring them back into use and realise their future potential as well as improving performance where possible.
SUSTAINABILITY ASSESSMENT/CERTIFICATION
SUSTAINABILITY ASSESSMENT/CERTIFICATION
We are experienced in supporting on a wide range of sustainability assessments and certifications for evaluating and certifying the sustainability performance of buildings including BREEAM, WELL, Fitwel, and SKA. We can advise on appropriate certifications for your projects and work as part of the team to ensure they are delivered to the highest standard.