BREEAM Guidance — Schemes, Categories and Ratings
Plain-English BREEAM guidance: which scheme applies, how ratings work, the assessment stages, and when a project needs a formal assessment by a licensed assessor.
BREEAM guidance for UK project teams
BREEAM guidance in one line: pick the right scheme (New Construction, In-Use, Refurbishment and Fit-Out or Communities), appoint a licensed assessor before design freeze, and target credits early, because late changes cost the most.
Reading about BREEAM, or need an assessment?
Guidance helps you plan, but it does not produce a rating. A certified rating needs a formal assessment of your project by a BRE-licensed assessor, with evidence submitted for certification.
- Who needs a formal assessment: projects with a planning condition, funder, investor or tenant requirement for a BREEAM rating, or owners who want certified evidence rather than a self-check.
- How it runs: pre-assessment and target rating, design-stage assessment, then post-construction assessment and certification by BRE (or an In-Use assessment for existing buildings).
- Who can assess: only a BREEAM assessor licensed by BRE can submit an assessment for certification. Ask any provider for the assessor's licence details and check them on BRE's public GreenBookLive register.
Request an assessment quote with your scheme, project stage and location, or discuss your project on a call. Further reading: New Construction assessments, In-Use assessments and BREEAM assessment cost.
BREEAM is BRE's sustainability assessment method for buildings and masterplans. Your project is assessed against the credit criteria of one scheme and version, weighted by category, and the resulting score determines the rating: Pass, Good, Very Good, Excellent or Outstanding. This page is the map — each section links to the detail.
Which scheme applies to your project
- New Construction — new buildings, including shell and core.
- Refurbishment and Fit-Out — works to an existing building, assessed in parts.
- In-Use — operational existing buildings and their management.
- Communities — masterplans and large mixed-use development.
The credit categories
- Management — commissioning, handover, responsible construction.
- Health and Wellbeing — daylight, air quality, acoustics, thermal comfort.
- Energy — demand, efficiency, metering, low-carbon technology.
- Transport — accessibility, cycling provision, travel planning.
- Water — consumption, monitoring, leak detection and equipment efficiency.
- Materials — responsible sourcing, durability and life cycle impacts.
- Waste — construction waste, adaptation to climate change.
- Land Use and Ecology — site selection, ecological value and enhancement.
- Pollution — refrigerants, NOx, flood risk, light and noise.
- Innovation — exemplary performance and approved innovation credits.
How the rating is reached
Credits achieved in each category are converted into a category score, weighted, and totalled into a single percentage. Ratings also carry minimum standards: certain credits must be achieved at each rating level regardless of the overall score, which is why a high percentage alone does not guarantee Excellent or Outstanding.
The assessment stages and evidence
- Pre-assessment — a credit-by-credit forecast before design freeze. See pre-assessment.
- Registration — the licensed assessor registers the project with BRE.
- Design stage — design evidence assessed and submitted; interim certificate where the scheme allows.
- Post-construction — as-built evidence assessed and submitted for the final certificate.
- Quality assurance — BRE reviews the submission and issues the certificate.
Costs, fees and value
Assessor fees and BRE's registration and certification fees are separate. What drives each is set out on BREEAM assessment cost. If you are comparing certification schemes, see BREEAM vs LEED and BREEAM and NABERS UK.
Want guidance specific to your project?
Tell us the building type, floor area and target rating and a licensed assessor will confirm the scheme, the realistic rating and the fee.
Book a BREEAM assessment or request a fixed-fee quote — we reply the same working day with the scheme, timeline and fee for your project.
BREEAM credit guides
| Credit | Guide |
|---|---|
| Wat 01 | Water consumption |
| Wat 02 | Water Monitoring |
| Wat 03 | Water leak detection |
| Wat 04 | Water Efficient Equipment |
| Ene 01 | Reduction of Energy Use and Carbon Emissions |
| Hea 01 | Visual Comfort |
| Mat 01 | Environmental Impacts from Construction Products |
| Man 03 | Responsible Construction Practices |
| Pol 03 | Flood and Surface Water Management |
| LE | Land Use and Ecology |
| Wst | Waste credits |
| Hea | Health and wellbeing category |
| Ene | Energy category |
| LCA | Embodied carbon |
Last reviewed October 2026.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does BREEAM stand for?
Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method. It is BRE's sustainability assessment method for buildings, infrastructure and masterplans.
What are the BREEAM rating levels?
Pass, Good, Very Good, Excellent and Outstanding, with an Unclassified result below Pass. Each rating has both a score threshold and mandatory minimum standards.
Which BREEAM scheme do I need?
New Construction for new buildings, Refurbishment and Fit-Out for works to an existing building, In-Use for operational buildings, and Communities for masterplans. A licensed assessor confirms the scheme and version before registration.
Where does official BREEAM guidance come from?
BRE publishes the scheme technical manuals and issues technical queries and guidance notes. Your assessor applies the manual for your registered scheme version — earlier versions keep their own criteria.
Related BREEAM pages
- BREEAM assessment cost — what drives your fee
- BREEAM pre-assessment — score forecast before design freeze
- How to achieve BREEAM Excellent
- BREEAM glossary — schemes, categories and credit references
Talk to a BREEAM assessor
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