Delivering buildings that perform - for a future that demands more

Every month, public buildings across the country quietly waste money. On average, they consume 34% more energy than promised at handover, translating to tens of thousands of pounds in additional running costs for a typical secondary school or leisure centre each year. With budgets under unprecedented pressure and residents scrutinising every spending decision, councils cannot afford to accept this as inevitable.

I've spent five years tracking building performance across schools, leisure centres, and civic buildings with our Energy Synergy^® service. The reality is uncomfortable but not surprising: a heating system left running at 24°C for frost protection because an engineer was cold during commissioning; lighting controls that never connected properly to occupancy sensors. Small operational issues like these can compound into major cost overruns. When you've invested millions in a new school only to discover it's burning through the operational budget month after month, that's not just inefficiency – it's failing to deliver the value your residents expect.

The compliance crunch is coming

The UK's Net Zero Carbon Buildings Standard, launched in pilot form last year, is expected to require proof that buildings achieve their promised energy targets in operation, not just on paper. By 2030, this could be mandatory for major projects. Forward-thinking councils are already looking to get ahead before regulations force it. The question for decision-makers is whether to lead this transition or wait until it becomes the cost of staying compliant.

From data to savings

Performance monitoring is rarely implemented, and when it is, it typically fails at the crucial step - turning measurements into action. Facilities teams need specialist support to analyse monitoring data and identify problems, so people on the ground, like school caretakers, can act immediately. This isn't about construction quality. The challenge lies in creating better feedback loops between design and operational phases to understand and improve performance when the building is occupied.

At Hollycroft Primary School - Leicestershire County Council’s first school designed to achieve net zero carbon in operation - we have helped the customer identify improvements to reduce annual consumption, such as seasonal heating adjustments, saving around £8,000 from energy bills each year. At Horncastle Public Sector Hub, in Lincolnshire, simple changes to overnight equipment schedules and server room temperatures have led to annual savings of over £7,000.

These aren’t exceptional results; they’re examples of what’s possible when data is translated into clear, actionable fixes.

Our projects average 15% energy savings – nearly halving the typical performance gap. A secondary school might save £20,000 annually. A large civic building could save £100,000 or more. With two-year paybacks, these investments recover costs quickly while freeing up operational budgets for frontline services.

The budget argument works both ways

The inevitable objection is cost. But the real calculation is would you rather spend £15,000 now to avoid wasting tens of thousands every year in excess energy costs for the next 30 years.

This tension between capital and operational budgets is precisely why so many council buildings underperform. What is needed is a fundamental shift in how we think about building performance, creating accountability beyond the ribbon cutting and making ongoing monitoring and optimisation an integral part of delivery.

Trust through transparency

The performance gap isn't inevitable, it's a procurement choice. When councils include building performance services in construction contracts, they're not pursuing aspirational sustainability policy; they're practising basic financial management.

With climate emergency commitments under increasing scrutiny, understanding your operational energy serves both environmental and financial aims: enabling you to demonstrate real carbon reductions and cost savings.

For councils managing constrained budgets and rising expectations, the imperative is clear: measure performance, demand accountability, and stop accepting buildings that quietly drain operational budgets year after year.

Residents won't accept "we couldn't afford the monitoring" as justification for burning through hundreds of thousands in preventable energy waste. Neither should you.

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Doug Drewniak supports building performance across Passivhaus and net zero carbon in operation projects from design to post-occupancy. He was part of a task group developing the the UK Net Zero Carbon Buildings Standard and is a member of the Passivhaus Trust Technical Committee for Education. With over 10 years’ experience and degrees in structural and civil engineering, Doug is a key voice in driving operational energy efficiency across Willmott Dixon and the wider industry.