Balfour Beatty Unveils Enhanced Building New Futures’ Sustainability Strategy
Balfour Beatty, the international infrastructure group, has unveiled a significant update to its Building New Futures Sustainability Strategy, signaling its continued commitment to building a greener, fairer, and more resilient future. The revamped strategy builds on the progress already made, addresses emerging global and industry-specific challenges, and sharpens the company’s focus on areas where its impact can be most transformative.
The revised strategy represents a comprehensive and interconnected framework that reflects both the complex nature of sustainability and the responsibility that comes with being a leading player in the construction and infrastructure sectors. With six core focus areas—climate change, nature positivity, resource efficiency, supply chain integrity, community engagement, and employee diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI)—the updated approach is both ambitious and actionable.
A Holistic Response to an Evolving Landscape
Today’s global context is rapidly evolving. Climate change, extreme weather patterns, rising sea levels, raw material shortages, and the growing competition for skilled labor are exerting unprecedented pressure on economies, communities, and businesses alike. Recognizing these shifting dynamics, Balfour Beatty has strategically updated its sustainability approach to stay not only relevant but to lead from the front in setting benchmarks for others in the industry.
Regularly refreshing its strategy ensures Balfour Beatty maintains its momentum, adapts to future opportunities, and stays aligned with the broader sustainability goals set by governments, industries, and global initiatives such as the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
New UK-Focused Targets: Elevating Community Engagement and Nature Restoration
A standout element of the updated strategy is the introduction of new UK-based targets in two crucial focus areas—community engagement and nature positive outcomes.
1. Community Engagement: More Than Just Outreach
Balfour Beatty is doubling down on its social value commitment, with a revised and bold target of delivering £6 billion of social value in the UK by 2030, doubling its previous target of £3 billion by 2025. This expanded goal reflects both the scale of the company’s operations and the increasing expectations from communities, clients, and stakeholders for long-lasting local impact.
The strategy also includes a newly established UK social impact target of dedicating 60,000 hours to education engagement initiatives by 2030. These hours will be used for activities such as school visits, career talks, mentoring, and hands-on support to help inspire the next generation of engineers, technicians, and construction professionals.
To support this drive, Balfour Beatty has appointed STEM Learning as its corporate charity partner in the UK. Through this partnership, the company will bolster efforts to train teachers, offer work placements, and provide mentoring opportunities—building critical pipelines for talent and reinforcing Balfour Beatty’s pledge to The 5% Club, which promotes earn-and-learn opportunities across UK industries.
In tandem, the company is also introducing a dedicated community engagement platform, designed to better connect Balfour Beatty employees with local projects in need of volunteers or financial backing. The platform, due to roll out in phases, aims to simplify participation and maximize internal engagement in meaningful social causes.
2. Nature Positive: Restoring the Balance
In response to the urgent need for environmental action, Balfour Beatty’s updated strategy outlines measurable, annually evolving targets aimed at halting UK nature loss by 2030. These targets align with national efforts to reverse biodiversity decline, signaling a firm commitment to helping ensure that nature is on a clear path to recovery within this decade.
Supporting this effort is Balfour Beatty’s in-house team of ecologists, one of the few such dedicated environmental teams in the infrastructure sector. Their expertise helps the company embed biodiversity enhancement and habitat protection into every phase of project delivery—from planning to completion.
An essential tool in this nature-positive push is the continued application of the What3Things for Environment approach. This initiative educates the workforce on the seven most critical environmental risks that can arise during construction and infrastructure projects. It also provides practical mitigation steps, empowering employees to take an active role in reducing harm and enhancing environmental outcomes on-site.
The company has fostered a culture of transparency and accountability, encouraging its workforce to raise environmental observations, share innovative ideas, and highlight risk areas proactively. This culture not only helps mitigate risks but also creates a continuous feedback loop for sustainability improvements.
Leadership Commentary: From Strategy to Action
Jo Gilroy, Balfour Beatty’s Group Director of Sustainability, emphasized the importance of turning sustainability pledges into real-world actions. She stated:
“By strengthening our community engagement targets and introducing a new nature positive approach, we’re turning words into action; ensuring that we’re building communities and protecting and enhancing the natural environment side by side.”
She went on to highlight the company’s unwavering dedication to ensuring every part of the business contributes to delivering meaningful, measurable, and lasting benefits:
“We’re focused on six areas which form our Building New Futures Sustainability Strategy and are committed to ensuring each and every part of our business has the knowledge, tools, and support needed to deliver meaningful, measurable, and lasting benefits in each of these areas—for people, places, and nature. It is critical that we take responsibility for safeguarding the natural resources and communities we depend on. Every action counts.”
Strategy That Leads By Example
Balfour Beatty’s updated sustainability roadmap reflects a clear understanding: that in today’s complex world, companies must act boldly and responsibly to build trust and resilience across their supply chains and communities. The Building New Futures framework not only positions the company as a sustainability leader but also raises the bar for how construction and infrastructure firms define success in the 21st century.
By blending long-term vision with practical steps, the updated strategy represents a model for the industry—one that understands the urgency of climate action, the importance of social value, and the power of collaboration to deliver transformative change.
As the global demand for infrastructure grows, so too does the opportunity to build a better world—one that balances human progress with ecological stewardship and social inclusion. Through its updated strategy, Balfour Beatty aims to be at the heart of that transformation.
