BNP Paribas Real Estate Next X locational analysis research has revealed the top 10 greenest cities to invest in across the UK. Cambridge, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Milton Keynes and Swansea scored highest against several metrics including the number of office buildings with a BREEAM rating, CO2 emissions per capita and roadside air pollutants index.
| Next X Top 10 Environmental Scores | |
| Location | Score |
| Cambridge | 1.29 |
| Glasgow | 0.85 |
| Edinburgh | 0.74 |
| Milton Keynes | 0.67 |
| Swansea | 0.64 |
| Peterborough | 0.50 |
| Oxford | 0.49 |
| Bristol | 0.46 |
| Dundee | 0.37 |
| Manchester | 0.34 |
The results highlight the efforts for cities across the UK to embrace sustainability with Glasgow the only city listed to have its own ‘greenprint’ laying out opportunities for green investment, and Milton Keynes, placing fourth and one of the newly allocated Jubilee cities, having the highest number of EV charging points per capita and the second highest number of new homes being delivered in the past year.
Charlie Tattersall, Associate Director, Research at BNP Paribas Real Estate commented: “It is no longer satisfactory to simply consider an asset’s investment potential purely in isolation. The reality is that you could own the greenest building in an area, but if the wider locational offer does not match up with its strong environmental credentials, then it could be argued that its longevity isn’t entirely protected against ever-shifting ESG requirements. This is where holistic data can help to mitigate risk, with Next X simplifying this process by scoring locations using a multitude of socio-economic data sets to provide a more comprehensive view of location’s potential.”
“Our latest Next X environmental data indicates that many secondary locations present amongst the strongest green credentials to a potential investor across the UK. In light of a shift towards localism, we could see many of these areas rise to further prominence as investor’s ESG requirements widen.”
NEXT X is unique location analysis model fully customisable to real estate portfolios. It goes beyond traditional location analysis measures to give investors and occupiers new ways of looking at how UK towns and cities can help deliver their business strategies.
For more information please visit: www.realestate.bnpparibas.co.uk/campaigns/next-x
