Westminster’s new policy is going further than these regional requirements by requiring all schemes to submit assessments regardless of size, if they are proposing any demolition of a building over one storey. New proposals will also need to meet upfront carbon benchmarks. 

The philosophy underlying Westminster’s approach is placing major emphasis on reducing primary resource use and preventing waste in the first place. Within ‘Retrofit First’ they have defined levels of redevelopment, which for retrofit involves demolition from 0-10% of the current floor area of a building, to partial demolition and substantial demolition involving more than 50% of floor area. The latter being classified as new build.

In line with GLA requirements, a Pre-Redevelopment Audit is also required for all new buildings and major demolitions, which will require the developer to justify any potential demolition and prove that they cannot achieve their aims through retention and retrofit. Westminster have further defined the ‘tests’ that need to be undertaken as part of this upfront decision making process. 

The carbon benchmarks that have been adopted apply at different levels depending on the size and type of development, and these are based on a methodology developed by the UK’s Royal Institution of Chartered Surveys (RICS).

In practice, Hrabrina said, this policy is already leading to a higher level of innovation. She quoted an example of 63 New Bond Street which is the former Fenwicks department store in Mayfair, which was presented for planning approval with more than 50% slab retention and 70% facade retention.

The design proposals had to address a number of challenges, particularly as the building was made up of eight different structures, dating back to the 1800s up to the 1980s. The solution adopted by the client and design team was to jack up parts of the existing structures thus allowing alignment of different floor and ceiling heights. 



Westminster themselves were also involved in innovative concrete reuse trial at their own major housing development at Ebury Bridge,   aiming to set a new standard in estate regeneration. 

Pernille  described how municipalities in Denmark have a role in circularity, both as major building owners (with over 2.5 million square metres), as promoters and supporters of regional development, and as the ‘raw material authorities’ deciding where and when raw materials can be extracted.

In addition, more generally across Denmark the wider adoption of a life-cycle carbon assessments (LCA) is supporting reuse as reused materials currently count as zero in the carbon emissions calculation. 

Other measures under consideration include the creation of local ‘material stations’ across Denmark, which are physical storage hubs which also may include some aspects of reprocessing.

The Capital Region are currently directly supporting a number of development through 25 hours free consultancy, alongside a Task Force for Circular Construction projects. Other actions include bringing together public/private partnerships, as well as considering the legal issues surrounding this. A ‘donor building’ platform is currently being developed, mapping future resource availability, which is being financed under the Danish public digitisation fund.

Gilli Hobbs completed the presentations by describing how Reusefully are brought in to help developers and design teams meet the increasingly stringent requirements laid down by Westminster and other local authorities in the UK, against the backdrop and with the aim of achieving greater retention and reuse. In some projects, drivers also include the client’s own sustainability commitments (for example, ESG strategies linked to wider stakeholder concerns), which is starting to become more apparent in some areas. Additionally, there may be a need to meet the requirements of certification standards such as BREEAM or SKA.

Overall, the requirements for granularity and detail within Pre-Deconstruction Audits - a first step to achieving greater circularity - is now growing, and this is a trend which is a welcome development. There are moves within a European standards working group (CEN TC 350 SC1) addressing how you should measure circularity and effectively enable reuse which will contribute towards this. This standards work is ongoing, and we will start to see Technical Reports and Standards being published in late 2026, and into 2027.

Gilli  presented Reusefully’s ‘Reuse Pathway’ diagram which is an effective way of addressing and communicating the practical actions needed to move from reuse potential to ‘reuse reality’. This comprises a ten-step process, helping clients, together with their design and project teams understand what they need to address and identify the most effective and appropriate action to take.

Gilli quoted an example of Reusefully’s work at 35 Lincoln’s Inn Fields  (which is situated within Westminster planning jurisdiction), on behalf of the client (the London School of Economics) and a design team led by David Chipperfield Architects, and now working closely during construction with the contractors McLaren Construction. 

A large proportion of the existing building was retained (more than 7,500 tonnes) and over 540 tonnes of reuse and higher value recycling is being achieved. This includes the reuse of bricks onsite, stone cladding, ceramic tiles and wooden flooring. A critical factor in this was the detail and granularity of the original audit undertaken by Reusefully, and close collaboration and commitment within the whole project team.

A lively exchange of questions and comments followed the speaker presentations, with questions focusing on topics such as the carbon limits that are being adopted by Westminster and other local authorities, how these are worked out and how they are applied. 

For both Westminster and Denmark, the emphasis is on proving that demolition is really necessary, and setting carbon limits for development, with developers needing to show what is the public benefit from new build. Hrabrina also described how these limits are based on a methodology developed by the UK’s Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) and the long process of detailed consultation and data gathering that Westminster went through.

It was a similar story in Denmark, with consultation and discussion around what would be required to meet carbon reduction targets in line with the Paris Agreement. Pernille also described how municipalities in Denmark are seeking to restrict new development in housing, encouraging retention of existing buildings with retrofit or extensions, in favour of demolition.

The role of green building standards such as BREEAM, SKA and DGNB was discussed, together with some of the specifics of the concrete reuse pilot that Westminster are engaged with. 

Issues such as insurance and warranty for reused products came up, and it was acknowledged as a challenging area. Gilli highlighted developments in the reuse of steel and areas such as reused raised access flooring and lighting where warranty schemes are starting to be adopted. She also highlighted the development of standards to support aspects of reuse, PDAs, circular design, circularity assessment, building and product passports. These should help with the provision of warranties and insurance cover once published. 

For further information on any issues raised in this webinar, please contact Reusefully on hello@reusefully.co.uk.

Additionally, you can download a copy of the presentations from the speakers here.