The Royal College of Physicians (RCP) has announced that its new Liverpool building, The Spine, and commercial event venue Spaces at The Spine – our host venue for micebook Ventures last month – have achieved the highest sustainability rating attainable in the UK.

RCP at The Spine has been awarded the Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM) Outstanding rating with the collaboration and support of its landlord Liverpool City Council, Architect AHR, Contractor Overbury and the project BREEAM Assessor CBRE.

BREEAM environmental certification requirements measure the environmental performance of a building by assessing the use of healthy and low carbon materials, access to amenities, reduction of waste and water during the works and in operation. It also encourages on site monitoring of energy, water, waste and CO2 emissions.

Spaces at The Spine’s head of commercial Events, Natacha Allen, said: “Sustainability is at the core of everything we do, and we are proud to be able to say that our venue incorporates green credentials in its very design. The Spine has also been built according to the principles making up the WELL Building Standard, making it the healthiest building in the North West and one of the healthiest in the UK, as we are currently also targeting a Platinum rating under this framework.”

The WELL Building Standard is the premier standard for buildings, interior spaces and communities seeking to implement, validate and measure features that support and advance human health and wellness. The standard consists of 10 concepts – air, water, nourishment, light, movement, thermal comfort, sound, materials, mind and community. These concepts have all been incorporated into the building design to create a happy and healthy environment and to optimise the health of colleagues and visitors.

At micebook Ventures last month, we caught up with Robert Hopkins, director & head of sustainability, AHR Architects and the design brains behind the building, on how he created one of the world’s healthiest buildings. Read the interview here