Entering 2026: What the 2025 Sustainability Report Reveals About Carbon Measurement in Construction
As we enter 2026, the 2025 Sustainability Report delivers a clear warning to the built environment sector: while sustainability ambition continues to grow, carbon measurement across construction projects is still failing to keep pace.
At HORDE, this finding closely reflects what we see across commercial, residential and mixed-use developments. Despite stronger ESG commitments and increased awareness, many projects are still progressing without consistent, early-stage carbon measurement — limiting the industry’s ability to drive genuine change and manage long-term risk.
Sustainability Commitments Are Growing — Carbon Data Is Not
The 2025 Sustainability Report acknowledges progress in sustainability awareness, policy commitments and corporate ESG strategies. However, it also highlights a persistent gap between ambition and delivery at project level.
Across many construction projects, carbon is still not being measured consistently or early enough. Where assessments are carried out, they often focus on operational energy use alone, with embodied carbon either estimated late in the design process or overlooked entirely.
From HORDE’s perspective, this disconnect significantly limits the ability of project teams to make informed decisions and deliver genuinely lower-carbon outcomes.
Why Carbon Measurement Matters to Project Outcomes
Carbon measurement is not simply a reporting exercise. It is a critical tool for shaping better projects from the outset.
When carbon data is embedded early, project teams can:
- Compare design options based on whole-life carbon impact
- Make informed material and specification choices
- Reduce embodied carbon before construction begins
- Demonstrate compliance with planning, funding and ESG requirements
- Protect long-term asset value and resilience
At HORDE, we consistently see the strongest outcomes when carbon is treated with the same importance as cost, programme and risk — not as an afterthought.
Key Barriers Identified in the 2025 Sustainability Report
The report highlights several recurring issues that continue to slow progress across the construction sector — challenges that HORDE regularly helps clients navigate.
Inconsistent Methodologies
There is still no universally adopted approach to whole-life carbon assessment. Different consultants, contractors and project teams often use varying assumptions, tools and boundaries, making benchmarking and comparison difficult.
Late-Stage Carbon Assessment
Carbon measurement is frequently introduced after key design decisions have already been made. From HORDE’s experience, this significantly reduces the opportunity to influence outcomes and achieve meaningful reductions.
Skills and Knowledge Gaps
Many project teams lack the confidence or expertise to interpret carbon data and translate it into practical design or procurement decisions. This risks carbon reporting becoming a tick-box exercise rather than a genuine design driver.
Fragmented Accountability
Responsibility for carbon is often split across multiple parties, with no single point of ownership ensuring consistency from concept through to delivery.
The Commercial Risk of Poor Carbon Data
The 2025 Sustainability Report makes clear that failing to improve carbon measurement is no longer just an environmental concern — it is a commercial one.
For HORDE’s clients, the risks increasingly include:
- Planning delays or refusals linked to sustainability performance
- Reduced access to funding tied to ESG criteria
- Difficulty meeting evolving regulatory requirements
- Reputational risk with investors, occupiers and stakeholders
- Assets becoming less attractive or “stranded” as standards continue to rise
Reliable carbon data is rapidly becoming a baseline expectation for future-proofed development.
How HORDE Supports Better Carbon Outcomes
At HORDE, we support clients by integrating sustainability and carbon considerations into the core of project decision-making — not bolting them on at the end.
Our approach includes:
- Embedding whole-life carbon thinking from early design stages
- Supporting clear, consistent approaches to carbon measurement
- Coordinating multidisciplinary teams to improve accountability
- Aligning sustainability strategies with commercial objectives
- Helping clients respond to planning, ESG and investor requirements
By taking a practical, risk-focused approach, HORDE helps ensure sustainability ambitions translate into measurable, deliverable outcomes.
A Defining Moment for the Built Environment
The message from the 2025 Sustainability Report is unambiguous: the construction industry understands the challenge, but carbon measurement is still lagging behind intent.
For HORDE, this represents both a warning and an opportunity. As regulation tightens and expectations rise, those who invest in robust carbon measurement now will be better positioned to deliver resilient, compliant and commercially successful projects.
Speak to HORDE About Carbon Measurement & Sustainable Delivery
The findings of the 2025 Sustainability Report reinforce what HORDE sees across the built environment every day: robust carbon measurement is now essential to managing risk, unlocking value and delivering future-ready projects.
Whether you are at early concept stage, navigating planning requirements, or looking to improve the ESG performance of an existing asset, HORDE can help embed sustainability and carbon thinking into the heart of your project strategy.
Contact HORDE to speak to our team about how we can support your project with practical, commercially focused sustainability and carbon advice.