Climate Emergency Design Guide
The London Energy Transformation Initiative (LETI) is a network of built environment professionals working together to put the UK on the path to zero carbon. In January 2020, LETI published Climate Emergency Design Guide: How new buildings can meet UK climate change targets in response to the growing climate emergency.
The guide outlines requirements for new buildings to ensure climate change targets are met. It sets out a journey towards a net zero carbon future and is aimed at developers, landowners, designers, policy makers and the supply chain.
- Operational energy.
- Embodied carbon.
- The future of heat.
- Demand response.
- Data disclosure.
It includes requirements for four key building types:
- Small-scale residential.
- Medium/large scale residential.
- Commercial offices.
- Schools.
The guide will evolve over time, reflecting changes in carbon budgets, technologies and the capability of industry. Design teams will be able to register their projects as LETI pioneer projects and share their knowledge with other design teams.
Peter Clegg, Senior Partner at Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios said: “Following the recent declarations of climate and biodiversity crises, a new sense of urgency has emerged within the environmental movement in architecture. It is characterised by an awareness of embodied as well as operational energy. It is focused on cradle to cradle lifecycle assessment of our buildings, and it is driven by the passion and enthusiasm of a new generation of architects and engineers who are determined to make change happen. The London Energy Transformation Initiative sits at the heart of this movement and their guide provides an inspirational ‘call to action’ for everyone in the built environment.”
Hywel Davies, Technical Director at CIBSE said: “Delivering zero carbon buildings is a huge challenge. LETI has taken a major step to help the industry to work out how this is to be done for new buildings.”
You can download the guide at: https://www.leti.london/cedg
[edit] Related articles on Designing Buildings
- Architects Declare.
- A zero-carbon UK by 2050?
- BREEAM.
- Carbon footprint.
- Carbon negative.
- Carbon neutral.
- CIBSE Case Study: Walgreens net zero energy drugstore.
- Climate Change Act.
- Climate emergency.
- LETI publishes Climate Emergency Retrofit Guide.
- Low or zero carbon technologies.
- Nearly zero-energy building.
- Net zero carbon 2050.
- Net zero carbon building.
- Passivhaus.
- PHribbon tool calculates embodied carbon of designs.
- Stagnation point.
- What we need for the journey to net-zero carbon emissions.
- Zero Bills Home.
- Zero carbon homes.
- Zero carbon non domestic buildings.
Featured articles and news
We're expanding our collaborative mission by launching DB Intelligence, an exclusive market research advisory panel. Built environment professionals can now get paid to share their expertise on industry trends, products and services.
Panel members receive direct financial incentives for participating in research projects like short surveys, 1-2-1 interviews and focus groups. Register today to shape the future of the construction sector.
Planning condition discharge in England and Wales
A brief exoplanation from a building compliance expert, with further links.
Overheating guidance and tools for building designers
Guidance for dealing with element of building fabric control that have increasing importance.
Shading for housing, a design guide
From the Good Homes Alliance and British Blind and Shutter Association.
UK Standard Skills Classification (SSC)
A shared framework for describing skills needs.
Social media ban consultation comes to close
CIOB urges UK Government to consider social media’s role in careers guidance in ban debate.
The latest of eight Skills England apprenticeship units
The addition of battery manufacturing welcomed by ECA with a warning about the risks of fast-tracked apprenticeship units.
Building Control Independent Panel final report
A precis of a key report led by Dame Hackitt with full recommendations and link to the government response.
Building Safety recap April, 2026
A short and longer run-through of the month, with links to further information and sources.
CIAT May 2026 briefing.
From medieval scribes to modern word art.
ECA welcomes crackdown on late payment and push for clean energy, whilst CIOB seek fixed cladding removal timeframes.
Cyber Security in the Built Environment
Protecting projects, data, and digital assets: A CIOB Academy TIS.
Managing competence in the built environment
ITFG publishes new industry guide on how to meet the ICC principles.
The UK's campaign to reduce noise pollution: Mythbusting, articles and topic guides.