Resources and Best Practice for Local Businesses
Net Zero Targets & Decarbonisation Plans
1. Baseline
Use the most recent complete year for which you have reasonable information.
Baseline year: ____________________
2. Baseline Emissions
Enter your annual figures where you can. Don’t worry if you cannot complete everything straight away.
| What are we measuring? | Where can I find this? | Your usage | Simple calculation | Your emissions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Electricity Example: 10,000 kWh × 0.13096 = 1,310 kg CO₂e | Electricity bill or annual statement | _____ kWh | Your kWh × 0.13096 0.13096 kg CO₂e is the 2026 UK Government conversion factor for each kWh of UK grid electricity used. | _____ kg CO₂e |
| Gas Example: 10,000 kWh × 0.18231 = 1,823 kg CO₂e | Gas bill or annual statement | _____ kWh | Your kWh × 0.18231 0.18231 kg CO₂e is the 2026 UK Government conversion factor for greenhouse gases from burning 1 kWh of natural gas. | _____ kg CO₂e |
| Diesel vehicle Example: 1,000 litres × 2.58354 = 2,584 kg CO₂e | Fuel receipts, fuel card or accounts | _____ litres | Your litres × 2.58354 2.58354 kg CO₂e is the 2026 UK Government factor for burning 1 litre of average UK diesel/biofuel blend. | _____ kg CO₂e |
| Petrol vehicle Example: 1,000 litres × 2.075 = 2,075 kg CO₂e | Fuel receipts, fuel card or accounts | _____ litres | Your litres × 2.075 2.075 kg CO₂e is the 2026 UK Government factor for burning 1 litre of average UK petrol/biofuel blend. | _____ kg CO₂e |
| Business travel by car Example: 1,000 miles × 1.609 × 0.16152 = 260 kg CO₂e | Mileage claims or expenses | _____ miles | Your miles × 1.609 × 0.16152 This example assumes an average petrol car. 1.609 converts miles to kilometres and 0.16152 kg CO₂e is the Government factor per km for an average petrol car. | _____ kg CO₂e |
| Short-haul flight Example: 1,000 passenger-km × 0.12576 = 126 kg CO₂e | Travel booking or expenses | _____ passenger-km | Your passenger-km × 0.12576 This example assumes short-haul economy travel and uses the 2026 UK Government factor including radiative forcing. | _____ kg CO₂e |
| Water supply Example: 100 m³ × 0.1913 = 19 kg CO₂e | Water bill | _____ m³ | Your cubic metres (m³) × 0.1913 0.1913 kg CO₂e is the Government conversion factor for supplying 1 m³ of mains water. | _____ kg CO₂e |
| Residual waste to landfill Example: 1 tonne × 497.29 = 497 kg CO₂e | Waste invoice or contractor | _____ tonnes | Your tonnes × 497.29 This example assumes residual waste goes to landfill. Different disposal methods have different Government factors. | _____ kg CO₂e |
| TOTAL EMISSIONS | Add together all figures in the "Your emissions" column | _____ kg CO₂e |
Your estimated starting carbon footprint
Convert kg CO₂e to tonnes:
________ kg CO₂e ÷ 1,000 = ________ tonnes CO₂e
=
Your baseline emissions are:
________ tonnes CO₂e per year
3. Net Zero Target
Baseline year: ______
Baseline emissions: ______ tonnes CO₂e
Net zero target year: ______
4. Annual Reduction Target
How many years do you have?
Net zero year − baseline year = years to net zero
Example:
2045 − 2025 = 20 years
Your calculation:
______ − ______ = ______ years
What % do you need to reduce emissions by each year?
100 ÷ years to net zero = % of your baseline emissions to reduce each year
Example:
100 ÷ 20 years remaining to net zero target = 5% emissions reduction required per year
Your calculation:
100 ÷ ______ = ______% per year
What does that mean in tonnes?
Baseline emissions ÷ years to net zero = tonnes CO₂e to reduce each year
Example:
20 tonnes CO₂e ÷ 20 years = 1 tonne CO₂e per year
Your calculation:
______ tonnes CO₂e ÷ ______ years = ______ tonnes CO₂e per year
Your annual target
Reduce approximately ______% or ______ tonnes CO₂e of your original baseline emissions each year.
5. Decarbonisation Plan
Now you know how much you need to reduce your emissions each year, identify how your business will achieve that reduction.
Look at the emissions you calculated above and start with your biggest sources wherever possible.
| Area | What could you do? | What will your business do? | By when? | Expected impact |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Energy use | Reduce unnecessary energy use, improve lighting, heating controls, insulation or equipment efficiency | __________ | ______ | High / Medium / Low |
| Electricity | Switch to renewable electricity or generate renewable energy where appropriate | __________ | ______ | High / Medium / Low |
| Heating | Reduce heating demand and consider lower-carbon alternatives when systems need replacing | __________ | ______ | High / Medium / Low |
| Vehicles & fuel | Reduce mileage, improve journey planning and move towards electric or lower-carbon vehicles | __________ | ______ | High / Medium / Low |
| Business travel | Avoid unnecessary journeys and choose lower-carbon travel options | __________ | ______ | High / Medium / Low |
| Goods & materials | Buy less, reuse materials, extend product life and choose lower-carbon alternatives | __________ | ______ | High / Medium / Low |
| Waste | Prevent waste, reuse materials and increase recycling rather than disposal | __________ | ______ | High / Medium / Low |
| Water | Reduce water use, fix leaks and consider water-saving or rainwater collection measures | __________ | ______ | High / Medium / Low |
| Purchasing | Consider carbon emissions when choosing products, equipment, contractors and services | __________ | ______ | High / Medium / Low |
| Supply chain | Ask suppliers about their emissions and identify lower-carbon alternatives | __________ | ______ | High / Medium / Low |
| Other | __________ | __________ | ______ | High / Medium / Low |
6. Priority Actions
Action 1
What will we do? __________________________________
By when? __________________________________
Action 2
What will we do? __________________________________
By when? __________________________________
Action 3
What will we do? __________________________________
By when? __________________________________
7. Annual Review
At least once a year:
- Recalculate your carbon footprint using your latest information.
- Compare it with your baseline and previous year's emissions.
- Review which actions you have completed.
- Identify your next opportunities to reduce emissions.
- Update your decarbonisation plan.
- Improve the coverage of your footprint as better information becomes available.
Example: Small Business Ltd
Here is an example of how a small business could use this tool from start to finish, to create their own document for use inhouse.
1. Baseline
Baseline year: 2025
We have selected 2025 as our baseline year, as it is our most recent year with a full dataset from which to work from.
2. Baseline Emissions
After completing the carbon footprint table, we estimate our:
Total emissions: 20,000 kg CO₂e
20,000 ÷ 1,000 = 20 tonnes CO₂e
Baseline emissions: approximately 20 tonnes CO₂e per year
3. Net Zero Target
Net zero target year: 2045
As part of our corporate vision, we have agreed upon a Net Zero target that is slightly more ambitious than the national target of 2050.
4. Annual Reduction Target
We aim to achieve this target of as close to net zero as possible by 2045 by decarbonising our business at the following rate:
2045 − 2025 = 20 years remaining until target
100 ÷ 20 years = 5% per year
In tonnes:
20 tonnes CO₂e ÷ 20 years = 1 tonne CO₂e per year
5. Decarbonisation Plan
Small Business Ltd looks at where its emissions come from and identifies the changes it can make.
| Area | Planned action | By when? | Expected impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Energy | Replace remaining older lighting with LEDs and improve heating controls | 31st March 2027 | Medium |
| Electricity | Move to a renewable electricity tariff | 31st March 2027 | High |
| Vehicle | Replace petrol company vehicle with an electric vehicle when due for replacement | 31st March 2030 | High |
| Travel | Reduce unnecessary car journeys and use rail where practical | Ongoing | Medium |
| Waste | Reduce general waste and improve recycling | 31st March 2027 | Medium |
| Purchasing | Consider emissions when replacing equipment and selecting suppliers | Ongoing | Medium |
The actions and impact ratings above are illustrative examples, not calculated emissions savings.
6. Priority Actions
1. Improve lighting and heating controls by 31st March 2027
2. Switch to renewable electricity by 31st March 2027
3. Replace the company car with an electric vehicle by 31st March 2030
7. Annual Review
Each year, Small Business Ltd recalculates its emissions and checks whether it is making progress towards reducing approximately 1 tonne CO₂e of its original baseline footprint each year.
If it is not on track, it reviews its decarbonisation plan and identifies additional actions.
About this calculator
This calculator is designed to give small businesses a simple starting point for estimating their greenhouse gas emissions, setting a net zero target and developing a practical decarbonisation plan.
It is a planning tool and is not a substitute for a detailed organisational greenhouse gas inventory or an independently validated science-based target.
The emissions calculations use the 2026 UK Government Greenhouse Gas Conversion Factors for Company Reporting, published by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero. The Government publishes these factors annually for organisations to calculate greenhouse gas emissions from activity data.
What does net zero mean?
Reaching net zero means reducing your business's greenhouse gas emissions as far as possible through decarbonisation, before addressing the small amount of residual emissions that cannot be eliminated.
For context, the SBTi Corporate Net-Zero Standard requires companies following its framework to reduce emissions across their value chain by at least 90% by no later than 2050 and neutralise the remaining emissions with permanent carbon removals.
This calculator provides a simple planning approach for small businesses. It does not constitute an independently validated science-based target.
CO₂e means “carbon dioxide equivalent”. It is a way of expressing the impact of different greenhouse gases as a single number.
How are emissions calculated?
We multiply the amount of energy, fuel, water or travel your business uses by a government conversion factor. This tells us the estimated greenhouse gas emissions associated with that activity.
The conversion factors are published by the UK Government and updated annually. This calculator uses the 2026 UK Government Greenhouse Gas Conversion Factors for Company Reporting.