Assura PLC Assura completes first net zero carbon schemes

RNS Number : 7432V

Assura PLC

04 February 2025

 

4 February 2025

 

Assura plc ("Assura" or the "Company")

Assura completes first net zero carbon developments

Assura plc, the UK's leading diversified healthcare REIT, is pleased to announce the completion of two development projects, which are its first schemes designed to be net zero carbon, and achievement of Gold Certification under the IWBI WELL Building Standard for the Northumbria Health and Care Academy.

Jonathan Murphy, CEO, said:

"Today's announcement demonstrates delivery against our commitment to produce sustainable healthcare assets that offer a positive social impact to the communities they serve, while helping our healthcare customers to meet their net zero carbon aspirations.

"We have a clear, stated ambition to be net zero carbon by 2040 and the number one listed property business for long-term social impact. The completion of our first two developments applying the Assura Net Zero Carbon Design Guide marks further progress.

"I'm incredibly proud that our progressive approach to building design has been rewarded with the Northumbria Health and Care Academy in Cramlington being the first healthcare building in the UK to achieve WELL Building Standard Gold Certification.

"Our ESG strategy, The Bigger Picture, sits in the heart of our business and decision making and we will continue to deliver impressive buildings that facilitate the delivery of high-quality healthcare services. As the first FTSE 250 B Corp Assura is continually focused on prioritising the positive impact we have on all our stakeholders."

Completion of net zero carbon schemes at Fareham and Winchester

Following the launch of Assura's Net Zero Carbon Design Guide¹ in 2022, we have now completed our first two development projects committed to achieving net zero carbon for both embodied and operational carbon.

The two projects, in Fareham and Winchester, had a combined total development cost of £13.6 million and are immediately rent producing with the tenants now in occupation.

At Fareham, a refurbishment of an existing high street building into a specialist Children and Family Development Centre for Hampshire and Isle of Wight Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, the focus was on controlling the internal environment using as little energy as possible. Significant upgrades were made to the roof, walls and windows, which was combined with the installation of an all-electric heat pump system, powered using as much renewable energy as possible from 72 new solar panels installed on the roof.

At Winchester, a new-build city centre development for a medical practice serving over 17,000 patients, an all-electric energy solution has been adopted, as well as maximising solar panels on the roof, to minimise the ongoing running costs for the tenant.

Whole life carbon assessments are now being updated and finalised for each site to reflect the materials used during construction to calculate the final embodied carbon required to be offset.

In line with UK Green Building Council guidelines, actual energy consumption will be monitored at both sites over the first 12 months of operation to compare performance against design assumptions with appropriate adjustments and offset credits then acquired to ensure operational net zero has been achieved.

First healthcare building in the UK to achieve WELL Building Standard Gold Certification

Assura's flagship development in Cramlington, the Northumbria Health and Care Academy, completed in 2024, has been awarded Gold Certification under the WELL Building Standard². It is the first healthcare building of its kind to achieve this in the UK.

The Northumbria Health and Care Academy, let to the Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust on a 30-year lease, provides training to nurses, midwives and allied health professionals such as physiotherapists, radiographers, podiatrists and occupational therapists.

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For more information, please contact:

Assura plc	Tel: [phone]
David Purcell, Investor Relations Director	Email: [e-mail]
FGS Global Gordon Simpson Grace Whelan	Tel: [phone] Email: [e-mail]

 

Notes to Editors

¹ Assura's Net Zero Carbon Design Guide covers every stage of the design process to advise on what improvements can been made to building design and material choices to minimise the project carbon footprint. https://www.assuraplc.com/sites/assura/files/NetZeroDesignGuide_Issued_P03.pdf

² WELL, operated by the International WELL Building Institute ("IWBI"), is a globally recognised evidence-based certification aimed at promoting healthier buildings by focusing on both design and operational excellence to prioritise the wellbeing of building users. WELL is based on ten key concepts: Air, Water, Nourishment, Light, Movement, Thermal Comfort, Sound, Materials, Mind and Community. The certification is based on information provided to the IWBI and attributed to the Northumbria Health and Care Academy and all other projects at the time of enrolment, and relevant fields such as sector, industry or primary space type. https://www.wellcertified.com/

About Assura plc

Assura plc is the UK's leading diversified healthcare REIT. Assura enables better health outcomes through its portfolio of more than 600 healthcare buildings, from which over six million patients are served.

A UK REIT based in Altrincham, Assura is a constituent of the FTSE 250 and the EPRA* indices and has a secondary listing on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. As at 30 September 2024, Assura's portfolio was valued at £3.2 billion and has a strong track record of growing financial returns and dividends for shareholders.

At Assura we BUILD for health and as the first FTSE 250 certified B Corp we are committed to keeping ESG at the heart of our strategy, creating Healthy Environments (E) and Healthy Communities (S) and maintaining a Healthy Business (G).

Further information is available at www.assuraplc.com

*EPRA is a registered trademark of the European Public Real Estate Association

 

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