What is CEEQUAL?

CEEQUAL is the assessment and awards scheme for improving sustainability in civil engineering and public realm projects. It aims to deliver improved project specification, design and construction and to demonstrate the commitment of the civil engineering industry to environmental quality and social performance.

The Scheme rigorously assesses performance across 12 areas of environmental and social concern. It rewards project teams in which clients, designers and constructors go beyond the legal and environmental minima to achieve distinctive environmental and social standards.

Participants in a CEEQUAL assessment report a range of benefits from using CEEQUAL as a driver for improvement and having their project assessed. These include:

• Reputation-building and good PR – including delivery of the organisations’ environmental, sustainability and/or corporate social responsibility policies.
• Improvements to projects and best practice – ranging from whole-life costing, waste minimisation, resource efficiency (materials, water, energy), to reducing complaints and environmental incidents.
• Demonstrating commitment to the environmental agenda – to clients, within the team and the organisations involved, and to the industry as a whole.
• Enhanced team spirit – developing a positive “we must score well here” attitude and rewarding teams that have gone the extra mile.

Since the scheme’s launch in late 2003, more than sixty final and more than twenty interim CEEQUAL Awards have been made. Projects that have successfully completed their CEEQUAL assessment and have received an Award are listed on the 'Recent Awards' page.

Currently about 180 further projects are being assessed and the total value of projects that have been or are being assessed stands at around £15 billion.

Who is CEEQUAL for?

The CEEQUAL scheme is operated by and for the UK construction industry. It is relevant to clients of civil engineering or public realm projects, civil engineering design companies and civil engineering construction companies, including:

• public sector clients
• private sector clients – for example, developers and end-users of civil engineering projects including water and wastewater treatment plants, energy plants, railways, ports and roads
• designers
• design & build consortia
• contractors
• funders and regulators of construction schemes – who may want reassurance that projects are carried out in an environmentally responsible way.

CEEQUAL Awards

A CEEQUAL Award is an independent measure of project performance on a wide range of environmental and social issues. It provides public recognition, encouragement and a target for project teams to deliver high performance. Awards are presented to all project partners at suitable industry events.

A CEEQUAL Award for your civil engineering project will identify you as an organisation that:

• measures and compares standards of performance
• respects people and the society in which it operates
• seeks to undertake its work in an ethical and sustainable manner
• acts in a socially and environmentally responsible way
• protects and enhances the environment
• is concerned about the major impacts of construction on the environment and the earth's resources.

Please contact us if you are interested in applying for a CEEQUAL Award.

Please go to the Training page if you are interested in training as a CEEQUAL Assessor.