Strategy and Targets
Sustainability Strategy and Progress Reports
Our latest Sustainability Strategy was approved by Council in May 2022 and is aligned closely to the University鈥檚 overarching Strategic Plan - Strategy 2030: A Sustainable World for Future Generations.
Annual Reports on Sustainability progress against the UN SDGs are published publicly. Progress reports on the KPIs included within the Sustainability Strategy are reported annually to Council. In February 2023, Council was informed of the improved rankings in sustainable-focussed league tables, progress on nationally recognised sustainability targets, and the increase in engagement and visibility of sustainability from the staff and student 25 by 25 campaign.
In February 2024, Council heard the Sustainability Implementation Group had identified three Key Action Pathways for focussed sustainability and carbon activity, those being: Built Environment, University Travel and Supply Chain. It was also advised that, as part of its Sustainability Strategy, and in partnership with the Students鈥� Union, work continues towards the target of significantly reducing carbon emissions by 2025 through the 25 by 25 campaign. In addition, setting aside 30% of the campus to help wildlife, in accordance with the Wildlife Trust鈥檚 30 by 30 campaign, had begun.
Environmental Targets and Progress Reports
As part of the ISO14001:2015 accreditation an Annual Management Report is presented to the Sustainability Strategy Group. The last report on the 10th of May 2023 contained a review on documents such as the Environmental Policy, environmental incidents, and any changing circumstances.
As part of our environmental management system and Environment Policy commitments, we devise several targets to ensure continual improvement, topics range from energy, water, and carbon reductions, increasing waste recycling, enhancing biodiversity, greener travel and transport and construction and refurbishment targets. The latest targets and objectives can be found here.
We provide annual environmental reports to publish what we have achieved on our targets, in addition to Sustainable Development Goal progress reports. All are available on this page.
Education for Sustainable Development Target
| Date | Target | Status |
| By 31st of July 2022 | Undertake and publish the UNSDG curriculum mapping for one College for the entirety of their modules | Achieved |
| By 31st of July 2023 | Undertake and publish the UNSDG curriculum mapping for a second College for the entirety of their modules | Achieved |
| By 31st of July 2024 | Undertake and publish the UNSDG curriculum mapping for the third College for the entirety of their modules | Ongoing |
| By 31st of July 2025 | Undertake and publish the UNSDG curriculum mapping for the third College for the entirety of their modules |
Student and Staff Sustainable Engagement Target
Targets and key performance indicators are available through the Strategy 2030: Sustainability Strategy.
Community Involvement Target
| Date | Target | Status |
| By 31st of July 2022 | Publish University Civic Engagement strategy | Not Achieved |
| By 31st of July 2023 | Publish University Civic Engagement strategy | Achieved |
| By 31st of July 2024 | Hold a free University Community Day, to showcase the University's academic departments and services, through tours, workshops and demonstrations, on a range of themes, such as our planet, health and economy | Achieved |
| By 31st of July 2024 | Hold a public Science Festival, themed around Sustainability, to educate the community and introduce learners to a range of subjects | Achieved |
| By 31st of July 2025 |
The University Civic Engagement strategy sits alongside our broader University Strategy 2030 and our other strategic approaches. Civic Engagement is the way in which this University contributes to the educational, cultural, and economic prosperity and wellbeing of our communities. The strategy will set out how we aim to:
- Celebrate and raise the status of the University鈥檚 civic engagement work
- Develop our understanding of our internal and external networks
- Support staff and partners to foster sustainable collaborations
Sustainable Procurement Target
| Date | Target | Status |
| By 31st of July 2022 | Produce draft Procurement Strategy | Achieved |
| By 31st of July 2023 | Publish Procurement Strategy | Achieved |
| Further Procurement Targets are included in our targets and objectives document |
Budgeting for Sustainability
The University supports sustainability through a number of budgets. Please visit this page for further details.