Environment

At Springfield, creating quality homes and successful communities goes hand in hand with protecting the environment. Our environmental strategy focuses on reducing carbon emissions, improving resource efficiency and creating sustainable places where people can live, work and thrive. Through our pathway to net zero, published in 2023, we have set out how we will reduce emissions across our operations as we work towards our aspiration of achieving net zero carbon before 2045.

Our environmental performance

In 2025/26 we achieved:

• Average SAP rating of new homes: 87
• Homes delivered without fossil fuel heating systems: 66%
• Company car fleet that is fully electric :100%
• Construction waste diverted from landfill: 94.5%

Supporting a lower carbon future

Fabric First Homes

Springfield’s approach to building a home is firmly rooted in the ‘fabric first’ philosophy. By prioritising high levels of insulation and thermal performance from the outset, we create homes that are comfortable, energy efficient and cost-effective to run. This approach reduces energy demand, lowers household emissions and provides long-term benefits for homeowners.

During the 2025/2026 financial year, we achieved an average SAP rating of 87, maintaining our score from the previous year and significantly exceeding the level required to achieve an EPC rating of B. Research from the Home Builders Federation has shown that new build homes can save homeowners around £2,600 a year in energy bills compared to older properties, while generating significantly less carbon emissions.

Beyond energy efficiency, we place a strong emphasis on the quality of the living environment. Our homes are designed to maximise natural light, provide good sound insulation and ventilation and support accessibility, helping to create healthier and more comfortable places to live.

Sustainable timber construction

All Springfield homes are built using timber certified by either the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) or Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC). Our timber kit factories in Elgin and Glasgow allow us to manufacture high-quality timber frame systems in Scotland, supporting local supply chains while reducing transport distances and associated emissions.

Learn more about Springfield Timber Kit Systems.

Low Carbon Heating

Springfield has been at the forefront of delivering homes without fossil fuel heating systems.

During the 2025/26 financial year, 66% of the homes we completed were delivered without fossil fuel heating systems, an increase from 50% in the previous year.

Air source heat pumps remain our preferred solution for homes without gas. Our ongoing research and development programme continues to assess emerging technologies to ensure we provide customers with efficient, cost-effective and sustainable heating solutions.

Customers receive a home demonstration explaining how to use their heating system effectively. We have also produced instructional videos on air source heating systems, helping households maximise the benefits of the technology. 

Improving Resource Efficiency

Using resources responsibly and reducing waste are important parts of our environmental strategy.

Our approach extends beyond industry reporting standards by capturing construction, demolition and excavation waste across the Springfield Group.

We continue to work with suppliers and contractors to reduce waste generation, maximise recycling opportunities and improve the recovery of materials throughout our operations.

Sustainable sourcing

Responsible sourcing remains a priority for Springfield. The use of FSC and PEFC -certified timber across our homes helps support sustainable forestry and provides assurance that key materials are sourced responsibly.

Waste

Using resources responsibly and reducing waste are important parts of our environmental strategy.

Our waste reporting captures construction, demolition and excavation waste across the Springfield Group, giving us a comprehensive picture of the waste generated by our activities.

During the 2025/2026 financial year, 94.5% of construction waste was diverted from landfill, an improvement of 89.9% in the previous year.

While recycling and recovery remain important, our focus is increasingly on preventing waste from being generated in the first place. We continue to work with our teams, suppliers and contractors to understand what we waste, identify opportunities to use materials more efficiency and develop practical waste-reduction initiatives.

Investing in sustainable operations

As a Scotland-based business, Springfield benefits from operating within an electricity network where around 97% of electricity consumption is sourced from renewables, reflecting the country's favourable conditions for wind and hydro generation and longstanding investment in renewable energy.

Reducing the environmental impact of our own business operations is an important part of our pathway to net zero.

We continue to identify opportunities to improve energy efficient and reduce emissions across our offices, manufacturing facilities and construction operations.

Operational Carbon Performance

During 2025/26, our direct Scope 1 and 2 Carbon emissions per hold sold increased to 2,9 to 3.25. The increase was primarily caused by the prolonged use of diesel generators at certain developments while Springfield awaited permanent grid connections.

The result highlights the environmental impact of grid connection delays as new homes become increasingly reliant on electricity for technologies such as air source heat pumps and electric vehicle charging. This is an area that we will explore more closely in the year ahead.

Electric fleet

In 2021, we launched our electric company car scheme to support the transition to lower carbon travel. Today, 100% of our company car fleet consists of battery electric vehicles, with more than 100 electric cars being used by employees. We have also introduced electric vans and electric minibuses within our operations, and most recently our first electric forklifts at our kit factory in Elgin, helping to reduce transport related emissions across the Group.  

EV ready homes

As long ago as 2018, recognising the growing role of electric vehicles in the transition to a lower-carbon economy, Springfield committed to installing electric vehicle cabling in private homes with a driveway or garage. This was well ahead of regulatory requirements.

We have now delivered more than 3,000 homes with EV ready infrastructure, making it easier for customers to install vehicle charging points in the future. We delivered more than 3,000 homes with EV ready infrastructure, making it easier for customers to install vehicle charging points in the future. Now, with the growth in EV users across the country, we are pleased to have begun offering our customers buying houses a fully installed charger.

Creating Sustainable Communities

We design developments to become successful communities that will remain attractive and sustainable for years to come.

Our developments are planned around the principles of creating places where people can access services, facilities, public transport and green spaces within their local area. Every Springfield development has access to public transport within 400 meters.

We support the aspiration for 20-minute neighbourhoods and each of our developments, even within our more rural areas, have a means of public transport within 400 metres to allow residents to access bus or rail travel locally. The generous provision of greenspace and landscaping within our developments is designed with community wellbeing and the promotion of biodiversity in mind.

We are proud that many of our larger developments include facilities that help communities thrive including schools and shops. Our Village Developments at Bertha Park in Perth and Dykes of Gray in Dundee provide established examples of this.

Award winning places

These villages have also received national recognition for their placemaking and sustainability credentials.

Bertha Park was awards Gold for Best Sustainable Development at the WhatHouse? Awards, while Dykes of Gray received Silver for Best Public Realm.

Biodiversity and sustainable drainage

Protecting and enhancing biodiversity remains a key consideration throughout our planning and development process. From the earliest stages of site design, we take a landscape-led approach, seeking opportunities to retain existing natural features, create new habitats and deliver attractive green spaces that support wildlife and local communities.

Our in-house ecologist works closely with our development and landscaping teams to ensure biodiversity is embedded in decision-making across our sites. This proactive approach has enabled us to work alongside national agencies and industry stakeholders to help shape emerging policies on biodiversity net gain in Scotland.

Our commitment to creating high-quality natural environments has also received external recognition, with the biodiverse sustainable urban drainage (SuDS) pond at Bertha Park receiving a national award for its contribution to both environmental enhancement and placemaking.

Environmental Governance

Environmental responsibility is embedded throughout Springfield’s operations.

Our Environmental Management System is certified to ISO 14001 and independently audited by a UKAS-accredited certification body.

We monitor environmental performance through a programme of internal and external audits covering areas including waste, carbon emissions, compliance and environmental risk management.

Springfield also maintains a Group Environmental Policy which includes commitments to the protection and enhancement of biodiversity.

We are pleased to report that Springfield has had no environmental prosecutions in the last six years and our land bank does not include any areas identified as under nutrient stress.