ESG - Knight Frank Investment Management

ENVIRONMENT, SOCIAL AND GOVERNANCE

Environment

Planet stewardship and climate resilience

Social

Thriving people and communities

Governance

Promoting fairness and prosperity

ESG factors are at the core of our business strategy, allowing us to drive the continued performance of our clients’ investments whilst benefiting people and our planet.

We take an active approach to our sustainability responsibilities and are fully committed to integrating our ESG values across our business, the assets we manage, and with our employees, suppliers, occupiers and the communities in which we operate and invest.

ESG in Action

We have integrated processes and standards to help us assess, improve and monitor each asset’s sustainability impact throughout its lifetime by working towards:

Calculating portfolios’ carbon emissions and tracking energy, waste and water consumption (KFIM Asset under Management Carbon Report 2022).
Introducing measures and practices to reduce consumption. Working to improve energy performance, increase on-site renewable power generation and the purchase of renewable electricity
Inviting occupiers to take part in occupancy surveys and engaging them to actively promote environmental and social measures
Participating in the Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark (GRESB), taking action and being transparent about our ESG data and performance.
Contributed into three consultations including: FCA CP24/8: Extending the Sustainability Disclosure Requirements (SDR) regime to Portfolio Management; FCA GC23/3: Guidance on the anti-greenwashing rule; FCA/ISSB/TPT: ESG Metrics for Real Estate. And for new acquisitions / developments:
Setting a minimum of the Building Research Establishment's Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM) ‘Very Good’ on new developments and exploring BREEAM ratings for other assets.
Influencing decision-making using a comprehensive checklist of risks and opportunities based on the One Planet Living® framework by Bioregional. We review impacts on health and happiness, equity and local economy, culture and community, land use and wildlife, sustainable water, local and sustainable food, sustainable materials, sustainable transport, zero waste and zero carbon.

ESG Progress

We have set 2025 as the target year to reach net zero carbon for KFIM’s operational emissions and 2050 or sooner for our assets under management. KFIM’s Long Income Property Unit Trust (LIPUT) Fund published its Net Zero Strategy 2022-2050 including interim and long-term targets to CRREM’s net zero framework.
The LIPUT Fund submitted its Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR) statement and self-qualifies under Article 8.
We published our response to Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures (TCFD).
We are committed to fostering a diverse, equitable, and inclusive (DEI) workplace, and annually contribute to the Asset Owner Diversity Charter to monitor progress and develop our DEI strategy and initiatives.
We completed an office space survey to inform our employee health and well-being approach, and underwent a biophilic design office retrofit to enhance our connection to nature and promote a regenerative work environment.
We are a proud signatory of the United Nations-supported Principles for Responsible Investment and the 10 principles of the UN Global Compact.
We have integrated these across our policies and procedures including: Responsible Investment which supersedes our Environment Policy, Communities & Charities, Diversity & Inclusion, Health & Safety, Human Rights & Modern Slavery, and Supplier Code of Conduct.