Carbon Reduction Plans for Public Sector Tenders (PPN 006)

What a Carbon Reduction Plan is

A Carbon Reduction Plan (CRP) is a short public document that sets out your company's carbon footprint and how you'll get to Net Zero. Central government buyers ask for one under Procurement Policy Note 006 (PPN 006) before you can bid for major contracts. The NHS asks for one on most of its procurements too.

No plan, or a plan that doesn't meet the standard, and you fail the selection stage. Your price and quality never get looked at.

We work out your emissions from your bills, mileage and records, and write the plan in the government template. You check it, your director signs it, and you publish it on your website.

Who needs one

Central government contracts. PPN 006 applies to central government departments, their executive agencies and non-departmental public bodies. It covers contracts worth more than £5 million a year, including VAT, for procurements advertised on or after 24 February 2025. Earlier procurements fall under the old PPN 06/21. The requirements are the same; the note was updated for the Procurement Act 2023.

NHS contracts. The NHS asks for a Carbon Reduction Plan on new contracts of £5 million a year or more, and a CRP covering the same scopes on new contracts below that figure but above the published procurement thresholds. A plan written to PPN 006 is accepted.

Frameworks and subcontracts. Frameworks run by these buyers can ask for a CRP too, and main contractors can pass the requirement down to their supply chain. If a tender pack asks for a "PPN 006 Carbon Reduction Plan", "PPN 06/21 CRP" or "Net Zero commitment", this is it.

What has to be in it

The plan follows the government template:

1. Commitment to Net Zero by 2050 at the latest.
2. Baseline emissions: the year you measure against, with the figures.
3. Current emissions: your latest 12-month reporting period.
4. Reduction targets: where you expect emissions to be over the next five years and beyond.
5. Carbon reduction projects: what you've already done, and what you'll do while running the contract.
6. Declaration and sign-off: approved by the board (or equivalent) and signed by a director, with name, job title and date.

Your emissions are reported in tonnes of CO2e for UK sources, covering the seven greenhouse gases, using the GHG Protocol Corporate Standard and the UK Government conversion factors.

Scope 1, 2 and 3: what we count

• Scope 1: fuel you burn directly. Gas for heating, diesel and petrol in company vehicles, refrigerant leaks from air conditioning.
• Scope 2: electricity you buy for offices, depots and sites.
• Scope 3: five set categories: upstream transport and distribution, waste from your operations, business travel, staff commuting, and downstream transport and distribution.

All of Scope 1 and 2 must be in. If one of the five Scope 3 categories doesn't apply to you, the plan has to say why. A missing scope with no explanation is a fail.

How a CRP is scored

A CRP is pass or fail. The buyer checks that:

• it confirms the Net Zero by 2050 commitment;
• it was published within the 12 months before the tender notice (or after it);
• its reporting period ended no more than 18 months before the tender notice, unless you give an acceptable reason;
• it reports every required scope, or explains a gap;
• it sets out the environmental measures you'll use on the contract;
• it has a completed, signed declaration.

The emissions figures themselves aren't scored. You don't need a low footprint to pass. You need a plan that meets the standard, on time, signed off. No independent audit is needed.

A new company trading for less than 12 months isn't penalised: it confirms the Net Zero commitment and publishes a full plan as soon as it can.

Keeping it current

The plan has to be reviewed and updated every year, within 6 months of your financial year-end. Publish the latest version on your UK website with a clear link from the homepage, and keep the older ones online. If you don't have a website, you send a copy to anyone who asks within 30 days.

Miss the annual update and an out-of-date plan can fail the 12-month test on your next bid. We can do the update each year from the same records, so the figures stay consistent.

What's changing: NHS from April 2027

Checked 14 November 2026.

From 1 April 2027 the NHS brings in tougher requirements for contracts of £5 million a year or more, and for new frameworks: a global boundary instead of UK only, all relevant Scope 3 categories, targets validated by a third party, and the expected share of offsetting disclosed. Contracts below £5 million keep the current requirements, which match PPN 006. Procurements started before April 2027 stay on the current requirements. If you bid for large NHS work, it's worth planning the extra data now. We post rule changes like this on our industry updates page.

What we need from you

• Your financial year dates, and any CRP or carbon report you've done before.
• Gas and electricity bills (or meter readings) for every office, depot and yard for 12 months.
• Fuel cards or mileage for company vehicles, and business mileage in staff cars.
• Air conditioning service records showing any refrigerant top-ups.
• Rail, flight and hotel bookings for business travel.
• Staff numbers and how they get to work (a short staff survey is fine; we'll send you one).
• Waste transfer notes or tonnages from your waste contractor.
• Courier and haulage spend or mileage, in and out.
• Anything you've already done: LED lighting, electric vans, a heat pump, solar PV, a renewable tariff.
• The name and job title of the director who will sign.

What you get

• The completed Carbon Reduction Plan in the PPN 006 template, as Word and PDF, ready to sign and publish.
• A workings spreadsheet with every source figure and conversion factor, so the plan stands up if a buyer asks.
• Realistic reduction targets and projects based on what you actually use, not a wish list.
• A short note on what to change in your records so next year's update is quicker.

Price and turnaround

No fixed price: it depends on the size of the business, how many sites and vehicles you have, and how good your records are. Send us the details for a free quote. Turnaround: 5 working days once we have everything we need.

Want your offices sorted at the same time? A commercial EPC, a TM44 air conditioning inspection or an EPC B upgrade plan for your own building feeds straight into the reduction projects. We price them together. Some upgrades can get help from grants and funding.

Our experience

More than 17 years in energy assessment, with a mechanical engineering background. We've done more than 2,000 commercial EPCs, 300 TM44 inspections and 150 DECs, so reading meter data, fuel use and air conditioning records is our day job. We find the affordable, feasible reductions, not the most expensive ones.

Questions we get asked

Do we need a Carbon Reduction Plan for a contract under £5 million?
For central government under PPN 006, the rule applies above £5 million a year including VAT. The NHS asks for one on most new contracts above the procurement thresholds, and some frameworks and main contractors ask regardless. Check the tender pack: if it asks for one, you need it.

Is PPN 06/21 still used?
For procurements advertised before 24 February 2025, yes. Later ones use PPN 006. The plan's content is the same, so one plan written to PPN 006 covers both.

Our emissions are high. Will we fail?
No. The figures aren't scored. You fail for a missing Net Zero commitment, missing scopes with no explanation, no environmental measures, an out-of-date plan or no signed declaration.

Do we have to publish it?
Yes. The latest plan goes on your UK website with a clear link from the homepage. Without a website, you send a copy within 30 days of a request.

Related: Commercial services · EPC B upgrade plans · Commercial EPCs · TM44 inspections · DECs · SBEM calculations · Energy statements · Solar PV · Retrofit · Community heating · Air Quality Neutral · Urban Greening Factor · MEES for commercial lettings · EPC B by 2031 guide · Grants and funding · Case studies · Industry updates

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