Defra published its Timber in construction roadmap on 11 December.
The roadmap outlines the opportunities and barriers to the use of timber in construction in England, centred around seven priority themes:
- Improving data on timber and whole life carbon
- Promoting the safe, sustainable use of timber as a construction material
- Increasing skills, capacity, and competency across the supply chain
- Increasing the sustainable supply of timber
- Addressing fire safety and durability concerns to safely expand the use of engineered mass timber
- Increasing collaboration with insurers, lenders, and warranty providers
- Promoting innovation and high performing timber construction systems
Each priority has identified actions for government and industry.
The CLC’s Green Construction Board, as a member of the Timber in Construction Working Group, worked with Defra to advise and input on the roadmap.
The Timber in Construction Working Group will continue to meet regularly to track delivery of the actions outlined in the roadmap and to scope and implement new actions as needed. Defra will be developing a framework to monitor and evaluate progress on the roadmap’s objectives, including its alignment to wider net zero and resource efficiency monitoring and evaluation frameworks.
