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Delivering on IE's ESG commitments: FY25 in review

Written by Klavs Henriksen | 19-Feb-2026 10:59:59

At IE, sustainability isn’t an afterthought. It’s embedded into everything we do and is a key consideration at every stage of a client project, from first conversation to final installation.

Our FY25 ESG Impact Report marks our third year of formally reporting progress against our Environmental, Social and Governance goals.

This year’s report reflects how we're continuing to evolve: refining our carbon strategy, strengthening community impact, deepening accountability, and achieving B Corp™ certification.

Here’s what that progress looks like in action.

Environmental: Reducing carbon emissions and driving sustainable choices

Since establishing our carbon baseline in FY23, we have committed to halving emissions by 2030 and reaching net zero by 2050.

In FY24, we achieved a 15% reduction against baseline, exceeding our original 8% target.

In FY25, overall emissions increased as the business grew. But crucially, our intensity-adjusted emissions decreased by 1.63%, meaning we are becoming more carbon-efficient per £million of revenue.

Our FY26 target is a further 8% reduction on FY25 emissions.

At the same time, we:

  • Cut emissions from operational waste by 58.61% year-on-year
  • Diverted 100% of operational waste from landfill
  • Increased recycling by 29.7%

Measuring emissions

We work with Neutral Carbon Zone to measure our full Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions, which are independently verified to ISO 14064 standards and certified at the NCZ Gold level.

In simple terms:

  • Scope 1 – Direct emissions we control (e.g. fuel in company vehicles)
  • Scope 2 – Emissions from purchased electricity
  • Scope 3 – Emissions across our value chain, including purchased goods, deliveries and travel

Strengthening responsible procurement

In FY25, we’ve strengthened our Scope 3 focus, particularly around purchased goods and services, which are the largest contributor to emissions in our value chain.

Here’s what that looked like:

  • Engaging suppliers to encourage emissions measurement and disclosure
  • Promoting emissions reduction initiatives within the supply chain
  • Integrating environmental performance into procurement decisions
  • Supporting a transition towards lower-carbon goods and services

Helping clients reduce embodied carbon

Beyond our own footprint, we also help clients reduce theirs.

While every project is different, we take a common approach to always present the best options available to maximise the reuse of their existing furniture assets first.

Our furniture reuse services include:

  • Sustainable clearance - Clearing offices of unwanted furniture and extracting remaining value through resale or donation to charities and schools. Usable items are kept in circulation; unusable materials are separated and recycled, with nothing sent to landfill.
  • Refurbishment and repurposing - Repairing, refurbishing and repurposing existing furniture to extend its life. We provide carbon and cost comparisons versus buying new, helping clients make informed, lower-impact decisions.
  • Asset management - Auditing and tracking furniture assets across estates to improve utilisation, reduce unnecessary purchases and ensure items are redeployed where needed.

As highlighted in the report, one recent university relocation project resulted in:

  • 34,462kg of CO₂ avoided
  • 28,592kg of furniture diverted from landfill
  • 1,332 items reused, refurbished or donated

You can read the full case study here.

Social: People first, always

At IE, we recognise that our success is deeply intertwined with the wellbeing of the people we interact with - our employees, customers, partners, and the wider community.

The social component of our ESG strategy is designed to ensure that we cultivate an inclusive and supportive workplace, contribute positively to the communities in which we operate, and create value for all stakeholders.

Here’s what we achieved in FY25.

Community impact

We raised £17,461 for Scleroderma & Raynaud’s UK (SRUK) through our sponsored Thames Path walk.

Employee volunteering hours increased by 6%, supporting initiatives including Rainham Foodbank. We also fundraised for Alzheimer’s Society through the Great Property Bike Ride.

Alongside this, as part of our efforts to reduce waste and move materials up the waste hierarchy, we diverted waste timber and timber-related products to the Riverside Timber Recycling Project.

RTR collects non-hazardous wood waste from Northeast London and surrounding areas, dismantling and cleaning it so it can be reused rather than discarded. The reclaimed timber is:

  • Sold back into the local market for construction and joinery
  • Passed to community workshops for skills development
  • Or chipped for energy recovery when reuse isn’t possible

RTR also provides workspace and materials for ACE (part of Voluntary Action Epping Forest), supporting individuals facing barriers to employment or living with disabilities. Through woodworking and upcycling projects, participants develop practical skills while giving reclaimed materials a second life.

It’s a clear example of circularity in action, reducing waste while creating social value.

Inclusion & development

In FY25, every employee completed updated training on Anti-Bribery & Corruption, Equity, Diversity & Inclusion, and the Modern Slavery Act, reinforcing our standards around ethics, fairness, and accountability.

On average, employees spent 13.9 hours in structured training, spanning leadership, compliance, health and safety and professional development. At the same time, we maintained zero health and safety non-conformance findings in external audits.

Our DEI approach continues to focus on building a culture where individuals are selected, promoted and supported based on skills and abilities, creating an environment where different perspectives are valued, and every voice has space to contribute.

Governance: Clear standards and independent recognition

Strong governance underpins everything we do. We're focused on upholding transparency, accountability, and ethical conduct in all aspects of our business.

In FY25, we:

  • Delivered our voluntary ESG disclosure plan via statutory accounts
  • Completed annual governance and sustainability training updates
  • Maintained our EcoVadis Gold rating, placing us in the top 4% of assessed companies
  • Achieved B Corporation™ certification

Becoming a Certified B Corp™ is one of our proudest milestones yet. This globally recognised certification is not a label that’s given lightly. It reflects rigorous evaluation across environmental stewardship, ethical governance, employee wellbeing and community impact.

What makes it meaningful - especially for our customers - is that it officially recognises that IE’s way of working meets high standards of performance, transparency and accountability across the whole business, not just individual initiatives.

Unlike one-off awards, B Corp certification means:

  • We’ve passed independent, third-party assessment across multiple impact areas
  • We’ve embedded responsible practices into how we design, source and deliver workplace solutions
  • We join a global community of companies that balance purpose with performance, showing that sustainable business can also be commercially resilient

Being part of the B Corp community gives clients confidence that when they choose IE, they’re working with a business whose values are verified and visible.

Progress, not perfection

We are proud of the strides we have made in 2025, yet we acknowledge that the road ahead is long. We are more determined than ever to lead by example, proving that sustainability, innovation and business success can work in harmony to shape the workplaces of the future, benefiting both our clients, the communities around us and the world we live in.

The road to net zero and long-term social impact isn’t always linear. In FY25, business growth meant total emissions increased. However, carbon intensity reduced, meaning we delivered projects more efficiently per £million of revenue.

Progress does not always show up in straight lines. But our focus remains clear:

  • Halve emissions by 2030
  • Reach net zero by 2050
  • Continue strengthening supplier accountability
  • Deepen employee engagement in ESG
  • Retain and build on our B Corp and EcoVadis commitments

Download the full FY25 ESG Impact Report to explore our progress in detail.