BREEAM Assessor cheat sheet

Rating bands by % score: Outstanding ≥85, Excellent ≥70, Very Good ≥55, Good ≥45, Pass ≥30; anything below 30 is Unclassified.

The scheme applies to new non-domestic buildings; a bespoke or tailored assessment route is used when the building type is not covered by a standard scheme.

Certification is issued by a licensed assessor after BRE Global quality assurance; interim (design stage) and final (post-construction) certificates are distinct.

Energy category carries the largest single weighting (roughly 15-19% of total score depending on scheme version), followed by Health and Wellbeing and Materials.

Minimum standards (prerequisites) apply to certain issues, notably in Energy and Water; failing a prerequisite caps the achievable rating regardless of total score.

Innovation credits (up to 10% of total) reward performance beyond the scheme requirements and are added on top of category scores.

Exemplary performance credits are defined per issue and count toward the overall percentage; they are not the same as innovation credits.

Man-2 (Considerate Constructors) and Man-3 (responsible construction practices) are the principal management issues for the construction phase.

The assessment is scored per issue, weighted by category, and expressed as a single overall percentage used to derive the rating.

In-Use assesses existing buildings in operation and is structured in three parts: Part 1 Asset Performance, Part 2 Building Management, Part 3 Occupier Management.

Each part is scored and rated separately, so a single building can hold different ratings for Asset, Building Management and Occupier Management.

The scheme uses a self-assessment workflow with an online platform; third-party certification is optional but required for a certified rating.

Ratings use the same band structure as New Construction (Pass to Outstanding, with Unclassified below 30%).

Asset Performance (Part 1) is largely driven by building fabric, services and design attributes, independent of how occupants operate the building.

Building Management (Part 2) covers operational policies and management practices under the building owner/manager's control.

Occupier Management (Part 3) covers the fit-out and operations within the tenant's or occupier's control.

The scheme is applicable to any existing non-domestic building regardless of whether it was originally BREEAM certified.

Re-certification is periodic; the certificate has a defined validity period after which reassessment is required to maintain a certified rating.

The scheme is designed for projects that alter existing buildings; it recognises that some building elements are outside the project scope.

Assessment is split into four parts: building fabric and structure, core services, local services, and interior design; each part is scoped and rated independently.

Only the parts within the project scope are assessed and rated, so a fit-out-only project may be assessed solely on local services and interior design.

Upstream and downstream scope rules determine which issues apply based on whether the element is being altered, retained or newly installed.

The rating is derived from the assessed parts; the overall certificate reflects the scope of works rather than the whole building.

Issues relating to retained elements that are not being altered are typically scoped out to avoid penalising the project for existing conditions.

Energy performance improvements to building fabric and services are weighted heavily where those elements are within scope.

The scheme is applicable to refurbishment, fit-out, and combined refurbishment-and-fit-out projects across non-domestic building types.

Certification follows the standard assessor and BRE Global QA route, with design-stage and post-completion stages.

BREEAM Infrastructure (formerly CEEQUAL) assesses civil engineering, infrastructure and public realm projects rather than buildings.

Assessment is organised around project life-cycle stages: strategy, design, construction, and operation/handover.

Scoring is by percentage of applicable credits achieved; the rating bands are Pass, Good, Very Good, Excellent and Outstanding.

The scheme uses a project-defined scope; only relevant sections are assessed, and the score is normalised against applicable credits.

It rewards whole-project outcomes including environmental management, land use, ecology, water, energy, and community/stakeholder engagement.

Both whole-project and client/designer/contractor-specific assessments can be undertaken depending on the commissioning party.

Evidence is collected against each credit and verified by a licensed assessor before certification.

The scheme applies to a broad range of infrastructure: transport, water, energy, waste, flood defence, and public realm schemes.

Certification stages align with project decision gates, allowing interim awards at design and construction completion.

BREEAM Communities assesses the sustainability of large-scale masterplanning and the design of new communities, not individual buildings.

Assessment is structured around three steps: Step 1 strategic principles, Step 2 masterplanning, Step 3 delivery and operation.

It uses a scoring system with rating bands Pass, Good, Very Good, Excellent and Outstanding, based on percentage of available credits.

It addresses governance, social and economic wellbeing, resources and energy, land use and ecology, transport, and innovation.

The scheme is applied at the masterplan stage, before detailed building design, to influence the layout and infrastructure of a development.

Credits are grouped into categories with defined weightings; the overall score is the weighted percentage of credits achieved.

The assessment is intended for projects of significant scale (typically large mixed-use or residential-led developments).

Stakeholder and community engagement is a core theme, reflected in dedicated credits for consultation and inclusive design.

Certification is carried out by licensed assessors with BRE Global QA, and can be staged across the masterplan and delivery phases.