Case Study: Turning Curtins' carbon ambition into action
Background
Curtins is a leading employee-owned engineering consultancy, operating across 13 offices in the UK and Ireland. Founded over 65 years ago in Liverpool, Curtins provide sustainable engineering solutions across civil, structural, transport planning and environmental engineering, for a wide range of sectors.
Curtins are committed to embedding sustainability into both the work they do and how they do it; promoting low-carbon solutions and responsible design principles across their work, and taking proactive action to manage their own carbon impact. A defining aspect of their approach, and values that closely align with Beyondly, Curtins strive towards long-lasting positive impact and place people and the environment at the heart of what they do.
The Opportunity
Curtins approached Beyondly in 2023 for support with compliance across regulations including Streamlined Energy & Carbon Reporting (SECR), Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme (ESOS) Phase 3 Action Plans, and the UK government policy procurement notice, PPN06/21. In addition, they wanted to go beyond mandatory regulatory requirements and develop their Net Zero journey, seeking support with measuring their full organisational carbon footprint, setting targets, and producing an action orientated reduction strategy exceeding legislative requirements.
Curtins were keen to engage their employees in being part of the business’ carbon reduction journey and encourage a culture of support and learning around the carbon impact of their business operations.
The Solution
Beyondly has supported Curtins throughout their carbon management journey, from measuring emissions and setting science-aligned targets, to engaging employees across the organisation and developing a practical carbon reduction plan in line with stakeholder requirements and business goals.
Emissions Reporting
Working alongside Curtins to calculate Scope 1, 2 and all applicable Scope 3 emissions, Beyondly provided a comprehensive report outlining:
Organisational and operational boundaries
Data assumptions and methodology
Key emissions hotspots across sources and activities
Recommendations to improve calculation accuracy year on year
The results also fed into the figures required for Curtins’ SECR disclosures and PPN06/21 reporting. This process has been conducted annually from 2023 through to 2025, with emissions trends and progress tracked year on year. Any changes in emissions were flagged and data investigated to understand the drivers and identify potential reduction opportunities to implement.
Setting Carbon Reduction Targets
Beyondly worked with Curtins to agree carbon reduction targets that were realistic for the business, but aligned with the ambition of the Science Based Target Initiative (SBTi).
These targets were initially set as:
A 95% reduction in Scope 1 and 2 by 2030 from a 2022 base year
A 95% reduction in Scope 3 by 2050 from a 2023 base year
Since then, Curtins have strengthened the ambition of their Scope 3 target to 2045, to align with NHS supplier requirements.
Turning Compliance into Action
With a long-standing commitment to delivering meaningful environmental impact and fostering a more sustainable society, Curtins recognised compliance as an opportunity to drive lasting change. Empowering Curtins to go beyond compliance and turn regulatory requirements into practical initiatives, Beyondly worked with their team to:
Review their ESOS Phase 3 report and develop an ESOS Phase 3 Action Plan; identifying which energy saving measures they were going to implement, and the associated kWh savings.
Support subsequent ESOS Action Plan Progress Updates to demonstrate implementation progress.
Combine the measures outlined in their ESOS Action Plan with the reduction opportunities identified in their carbon footprint report to create a wider carbon reduction plan for Curtins. This included a roadmap of short, medium, and long-term actions covering Scope 1-3 emissions, with suggested actions, roles, responsibilities, and KPIs.
Model the impact of switching their offices from gas supplies, and one of the company vans from diesel to electric.
Embedding Sustainability Across the Business
To support with engagement, Beyondly has been involved with several sustainability initiatives Curtins have implemented to embed sustainability throughout their organisation:
Presenting a company-wide Net Zero presentation to Curtins’ employees as part of their Impact Week.
Sharing the results of their 2025 carbon footprint for Earth Day.
Engagement with the board on carbon emissions and ESG (environmental, social, governance), and the Curtins travel team to develop a travel survey for employees.
The Results
Since Curtins’ partnership with Beyondly began in 2023, there have been several key highlights on their carbon reduction journey:
Between 2022-2025, there has been a 25% reduction in market-based Scope 2 emissions, and a 12% reduction in Scope 1 and market-based Scope 2 emissions.
From 2023- 2025 there has been an 11% reduction in Scope 3 emissions, with reductions in Scope 3 tracking well against the reduction target.
Success from their most recent 2025 report includes a 13% reduction in electricity emissions, a 7% reduction in purchased goods and services, a 47% reduction in business travel emissions, and a 7% reduction in overall emissions compared to 2024.
The first ESOS Action Plan Progress Update identified total savings of 8,999 kWh in the 2025 period, with some of the most significant actions including introducing a car share scheme, providing eco-driving training, and reducing PIR sensor timings.
Purchased Goods and Services has been identified as the most significant contributor to Curtins’ carbon footprint (79% in 2025), with subcontractors accounting for 48%. To tackle this, Curtins have started a programme of supplier engagement, working to get more accurate data from their top 10 subcontractors, reviewing their procurement processes, and helping the supply chain decarbonise using the Sustainability Supply Chain School.
Beyondly and Curtins have developed a mutually beneficial professional relationship, with members of our team attending their ‘London: Curtins & The Purpose Coalition Parliamentary Reception’ event, and members of their team attending Beyondly’s 20 Year Anniversary celebratory drinks reception in Parliament for Net Zero Week.
Curtins have engaged with Beyondly on making an early start with their ESOS Phase 4 compliance.
